Shinigami Zutto
by Skarla
Summary: Crossover between Yami no Matsuei and Gundam Wing. Is Tsuzuki really who he seems to be? Hint: Who else has purple eyes, ne? 1x1, 2x2, 3x4, past 1x2 so far, character death Duh, we're talking about YnM!, COMPLETE
1. Duo Emerges

Disclaimer: I do not own Yami no Matsuei or Gundam Wing. I do own the story, however!

Warnings: Well, this is me, so I suspect there will be some slash. Past 1x2 and 3x4 at the very least!

"Tsuzuki-san, I would like you to travel to Sanq as a special favour to the Sanq branch of the Judgement Bureau. It appears that-"

"Nani! Sanq? No way!" Tsuzuki interrupted, holding up a hand. "I refuse to go there."

"But Tsuzuki-san, they need a guardian to look into some suspicious occurrences."

"Send someone else. I won't go."

"But you're the best. Hisoka and yourself have the best chance of solving this case."

"I said no, boss. I'm not going."

The door slammed shut behind the purple-eyed Shinigami. From behind the desk, his Boss blinked in surprise.

"I wonder what that was about?"

oooooooooooooo

Hisoka glanced up from his computer screen as his partner stormed into their office and threw himself into his chair. He was broadcasting a tangled mix of emotions that the young empath couldn't begin to sort out.

"What did the boss want?"

"Doesn't matter. I refused. You can go if you like – maybe with Watari."

"Was it a job?"

"Aa, suspicious occurrences in Sanq."

"Why did you refuse?"

"I don't work in Sanq. Ne, Hisoka, want some coffee? I was going to go get some."

"No thanks, I'm fine."

Hisoka turned back to his screen, and then glanced down at the papers in his hand. They could wait; this was more important. Unravelling the mystery that was Tsuzuki was taking him some time and a lot of effort, particularly since the violet-eyed Shinigami was so intent on letting people only see the masks, never himself. However, Hisoka thought it was worth it. Ever since he had glimpsed the fragment of Tsuzuki's past, where he had been ostracised and teased by the other children.

Hisoka focused on that memory. He had already examined the surroundings, and come up with nothing. This time he concentrated on the voices. Tsuzuki probably wouldn't be back for a bit, so the green-eyed empath had a little time to himself.

He almost had it… frowning in concentration Hisoka did his best to make out what the kids were shouting. Then it hit him; it wasn't in Japanese! The accent was all wrong. He tried again, trying to make out individual syllables rather than words.

_Maxwell's Demon_

"Tsuzuki was afraid that he wasn't even human when he flashed me that. Demon… Akurei. Well, that sort of solves that one." Hisoka turned back to his computer screen. "Tsuzuki has worked here for around 70 years, and he died when he was 26. He was about 6 in that memory, by my reckoning. So, 90 years ago. That's back before the wars, AC 184, I think…"

Just then Hisoka heard footsteps coming down the hallway and quickly closed the search window. It wouldn't do to have Tsuzuki figure out what he was up to; his partner would only pull away from him.

ooooooooooo

Tsuzuki pushed open the door to the office, a steaming mug of coffee in his hands. His breath caught in his throat at the sight of his partner sitting at his computer, staring intently at the screen. 'How many times did I see Heero sit like that?' wondered the part of his that was Duo. Tsuzuki grimaced. He had mostly managed to forget that he had once been Duo, but every now and again the abused street rat in him raised his head. This time he suspected it had been the mission in Sanq – no, not mission! Case! Tsuzuki groaned silently. 'After all these years you'd think the military training would have no hold. Mine was tenuous as it was.'

Tsuzuki slumped his way over to his desk and rested his head on his hands, staring intently at the swirls the bubbled made on the top of his coffee.

"Are you going to drink that or did you get it for the way it looks?" Hisoka's rather monotone voice cut through the silence.

"Dammit, why do you even have to sound like Heero?" Tsuzuki muttered, too softly for Hisoka to hear.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. It's the end of the day; I'm going home."

As soon as he was out the door, Tsuzuki let Duo's instincts take over. Instead of walking down the corridor, he jumped straight up, and into the air vent above, transforming into spirit mode and passing through the wire grating. Not two seconds later, Hisoka opened the door.

"Tsuzuki!" he called. Duo held his breath, and worked on suppressing his emotions. It was something that he had learned to do around Quatre when the teenager was upset. However, he had taken care to make sure that Hisoka had no idea that he could do it. Old habits die hard, and he still always tried to keep something in reserve.

"Kurosaki-kun, is something the matter?" Tatsumi's smooth voice asked.

"Ano… have you seen Tsuzuki? He left, and just… disappeared."

"Ah. Tsuzuki can do that. He is almost impossible to find if he doesn't want to be."

"And I learn another thing about my partner."

"Did he tell you about the case in Sanq?"

"Yes, he said that he refused to go. Do you know why?"

"No, but I do know that he avoids that country, as he does the Arabian Desert and some of the colonies."

"Do you know which ones?"

"L2 and L4, as far as I remember. I don't know why he avoids them either. Our Tsuzuki-san is something of a mystery."

"You're telling me. Well, I'd better get back to what I was going. Sayonara."

"Sayonara."

Once Tatsumi's footsteps had faded and Hisoka had retreated back into the office, Duo began to move along the ventilation shaft. The journey made him feel more 'Duo-ish' than he had for months. It wasn't that he didn't like his past – there were good memories there as well as the bad ones – but he had a new life now as Tsuzuki Asato, one that he had chosen for himself.

"But maybe being Duo Maxwell again isn't such a bad thing. Especially seeing as I may have to go to Sanq. Relena is old, but she is still alive, as is Mariamaia. The other pilots, Zechs, Noin, Lady Une, they are all dead.

"Man, I better be careful, or I'll slip back into my old mode of speech too! Bet Hisoka would be shocked at that, I don't think he's ever sworn in his life." Grinning to himself, the ex pilot slipped out of the shafts into the men's bathroom two floors down. Dusting off his black coat, he swept out of the door, heading for the living quarters inside the Ministry.

oooooooooooooo

Back in the office, Hisoka carried on his search.

"Maxwell… Maxwell… there's a bit on a glam rock singer called Brian Slade, aka Maxwell Demon way back in 1970 something AD, I doubt that's it. I'm looking for AC… ah! Maxwell Church! That sound more like it. It was… bombed? No survivors? Maybe not then, Tsuzuki died over a decade later. Wait, a footnote?

What _is _this! Gundam Pilots? Weren't they in the war? I remember something from a history class… Five pilots. Why did the Maxwell Church article send me here? Maybe there's something in the text…

Heero Yuy

Origins: Unknown. Japanese Decent. L1

Gundam: Wing, Wing Zero, Epyon

Known as Pilot 01, Yuy was the harshest of the pilots, known for giving no mercy. He self-destructed several times, and was responsible for the death of the peace leaders at the beginning of the war. Yuy was trained by a man called Dr J, who is reported as being the main force behind the creation of the Gundams. He is the only pilot who successfully mastered the Zero system.

Duo Maxwell

Origins: Unknown. American Decent. L2

Gundam: Deathscythe, Deathscythe Hell

Pilot 02, a maniacal fighter who called himself the God of Death, or Shinigami. The stealth expert amongst the pilots, he was rumoured to be an L2 streetrat and the only survivor of the Maxwell Church massacre. Maxwell disappeared after the Mariamaia coup. He was trained by Professor G, and never actually took part in Operation Meteor. According to the other pilots, he actually stole the original Deathscythe, with G's blessing.

"Shinigami! Maxwell Church Massacre! That cannot be Tsuzuki! Oh, why isn't there a picture?" Hisoka muttered, scarcely able to believe what he was reading. The young guardian opened another window and began searching for pictures of the Gundam pilots.

It didn't take him long to find a shot of five teenage boys standing with someone he recognised to be a younger Relena Peacecraft, the heir to the Sanq kingdom.

Next to Relena Peacecraft was a serious looking Japanese youth, with dark blue eyes that burned even in the photograph. He looked deadly, even wearing some black skin-tight shorts and a green tank top. However, standing next to him with an arm slung around his shoulders was someone wearing sunglasses, dressed all in black. He seemed to have a rope swinging behind him… no, it was a braid! Hisoka gasped. It was over a meter long! Not even Oriya had hair that long!

Next to the braided boy was a short blond wearing a pink shirt and a tall brunette, who had his hair in a strange style, completely covering one eye. The brunette was wearing tight white jeans and a dark sweater, seemingly the most normal of the lot, despite his odd hairstyle. Last there was an obviously Chinese man in white traditional trousers and a dark blue tank top. He had his hair scraped back into a really tight ponytail.

Either the tall brunette or the teenager with the braid could have been Duo Maxwell, Hisoka guessed. He turned back to the page before and carried on reading, trying to figure it out.

Trowa Barton/Nanashi

Origins: Unknown. Mercenary. L3

Gundam: Heavyarms

Trowa was trained by Doctor S. He was originally part of a mercenary troop, who picked him up from an extremely young age. During the war he took cover in a travelling circus, who welcomed him back once peace had been attained. He his an accomplished acrobat and also performs as a clown in his adoptive sister's knife throwing act.

Quatre Raberba Winner

Origins: Arabian, L4

Gundam: Sandrock, Wing Zero

The blond Winner heir did not follow his family's tradition of pacifism, a fact which would have got him disowned had he not been the only male heir. Once the war was over he took over the company and was very successful while running it. Winner was trained by Instructor H and his main forte was strategy. He was the pilot who built Wing Zero and the Zero System.

Chang Wufei

Origins: Chinese, Dragon Clan, L5

Gundam: Shenlong, Altron

Chang had a profound distrust of woman, perceiving them as weak, which coloured some of his responses early in the war. However, he was forced to revise his opinion, and managed to carve out a successful career as a Preventer after the wars. After the wars he grew his hair out in memory of Maxwell, who disappeared. Chang was trained by Master O, and was a scholar before the war.

"Grew his hair out… and if he's Chinese, then its already longer than the tall guy's, so the one with the braid must be Maxwell. Huh, he's got glasses on. If he really is Tsuzuki, then his eyes will be purple. I need better descriptions…"

Searching again, Hisoka finally managed to pull out the information he wanted. What he saw made his eyes widen in shock.

Duo Maxwell

Stats

Gundam Pilot

Mobile Suit: Deathscythe

Age: 15

Origin: L2 Colony

Ethnic Origin: American

Height: 156cm

Weight: 43kg

Eye Colour: Purple / Cobalt Blue

Hair Colour: Brown

"Masaka!"


	2. Plots on the Vid

Ok, if anyone wants explanations of either the GW background or the YnM background, tell me in a review or something and I'll add a summary next chapter. I don't want to confuse anyone, ne? (btw: Seki Toshihiko voiced both Duo and Watari. Would have been more fun if it was Duo and Tsuzuki, but you can't have everything. And in my parallels thing, Watari reminds Tsuzuki if himself how he used to be)

Ohh, better explain the parallels thing.

Hisoka – Heero (they even like the same insult! Hisoka is always calling Tsuzuki a baka!)

Tatsumi – Trowa (Smooth, powerful, calm and compassionate. Oh, and quiet and to the point)

Gushoshin – Quatre (Mother hen-ish, cute 'n' fluffy, good at research and strategy)

Watari – 'old' Duo, or Duo's mask.

Obviously they're not the same, but they remind Tsuzuki/Duo of the other… if that makes sense?

I don't own Yami no Matsuei or Gundam Wing. Plotline is mine all mine!

The door to his apartment clicked shut behind him; he was safe. Tsuzuki looked around his apartment and sighed. Old habits did die hard – every exit was clear, every seat arranged so that it was possible to see the door – either by facing it or through the mirror over the mantelpiece. There were several items in the room that could be used as weapons, the secret cache of ammunition and explosives in the base of the sofa not included.

Shaking his head at his own paranoia, the ex-pilot headed for his computer. He had purposely not kept a track of them, but he had a sneaking feeling that eventually he would have to go to Sanq, or L2 or L4, or Arabia, and he'd better have some idea of what he was getting into.

Relena was still alive, at the grand old age of 95. All of his comrades had died in their 60's and 70's, as a result of all the drugs they had been forced to take and the harsh conditions they had had to endure. Mariamaia was also alive, co-regenting with Relena, who had adopted her. Lady Une, her principle guardian had died during a Preventers case only a decade or so after Duo had vanished.

A bit of searching uncovered the startling information that Heero never had married Relena.

"Heh, guess sharing a bed with me really did corrupt the poor guy," Duo muttered to himself. "Though its not like we ever did much beyond casual fucking occasionally and comforting when the other needed it. Ok, Q and Tro…"

He grinned to himself, startled, when an image search for his two friends turned up a scene in a church. "Looks like they got married. Good. Wish I could have been there." Although… he narrowed his eyes at the picture. Wufei was holding something long and thin, with a curving blade on top and a violet ribbon wound around the handle.

"Well, I'll be damned!"

Shaking his head, he shut down the computer and headed for bed. Flinging his clothes on a chair, he walked into the bathroom in his boxers and reached for the toothpaste. Toothpaste was something he always appreciated, seeing as he had had to spend so much of his life without it. Even aeroplane toothpaste or the hospital toothpaste that always tasted of medicine was better than no toothpaste at all. After he rinsed his mouth out, he turned off the lights and made a quick check of the apartment, making sure that everything was locked and the alarm system he had installed was active. If anything came through the outside walls, he would know about it. The incidents with Muraki had only cemented his certainty that the security system was necessary. Sure, Muraki was a good wizard, but Duo doubted that he was a match for a Gundam Pilot's expertise.

The sheets were cold against his bare skin and he shivered, wishing for his braid to help warm him up. But his braid was gone, cut off by that damn ancestor of Muraki's. But more than his braid, he wished for Heero. Although 'ice prince' was a fitting nickname for 01, Heero was actually one of the warmest people Duo knew. It was like the soldier had a miniature furnace inside him.

'Damn, why am I dwelling so much on the past! I've managed to almost successfully forget about it most years! And now, one mention of Sanq and I fall to pieces! I've got a new life now, I don't need the others. I have new friends. And now I am GOING to SLEEP! No more commemorating! And I don't care that I missed the wedding!'

Satisfied that he had chastised himself enough, Tsuzuki rolled over and dropped into sleep. Or rather, tried to.

oooooooooooooooo

Meanwhile, in the Sanq branch of the Ministry of Hades (JuOhCho)…

"Guys? Guys! Got a reply back from Japan. Apparently their top Shinigami is being difficult, but the Boss thinks he can work him round."

"Good, we need expertise for this assignment, and I've heard that the guy is good."

"He should be, hasn't he been doing it for 60 years?"

"70."

"See, we're amateurs in comparison."

"I still can't believe that we never realised that we were both still doing the same job. We might never had met if you hadn't called for outside aid, Heero."

"Hn."

"Still as talkative as ever, Yuy," Wufei commented. "Hey, Quatre, what about Trowa? Is he your partner?"

"Yes, he's coming tomorrow. He had some paperwork to do."

"Ah, the dreaded paperwork."

"Seeing as we're on the subject, it is really nice to have the opportunity to get to know you, Merian."

"Thank you. Likewise."

"I nearly had a heart attack when I walked into the Chinese branch and she was standing in the front entrance, tapping her foot," Wufei reminisced with a grin.

Quatre sipped at the cup of tea he had collected on his way back to Heero's office. "Strange, isn't it, that four out of five pilots, plus one extra, are all Shinigami, and yet the one who called himself Shinigami isn't here."

"Are you talking about 02?" Merian asked.

"Yes. I keep on forgetting that you don't know everything," Quatre said apologetically. "Duo disappeared about six months after the Mariamaia coup, hasn't been seen since."

"So he may still be alive," Merian said logically.

Wufei ran his fingers through her hair. "That's the most likely possibility. Oi, Heero, are you going to tear yourself away from the screen and be sociable?"

"Hn. Someone was searching for us a few hours ago, in the news articles. Image search too. But they're pretty good at covering their tracks. The only thing I managed to pin down is that they're working from Japan."

"Maybe it's their top Shinigami."

"Maybe."

Quatre sat himself down on the corner of Heero's desk. "Heero, how vital is this Shinigami to the success of the mission? What exactly does this case contain anyway?"

Heero turned serious blue eyes to the other Shinigami in the room. "Alright. There has been a series of murders in the capital. Relena is not in danger, but Mariamaia's granddaughter might be. The victims are all young, and so far the only connection is that they have the same blood group and they have had a body part removed. There appears to be no pattern to the parts removed. The murder, whoever they are, has so far proved impossible to find or track. So I scouted around some.

"In Japan, they had a similar case. They caught the man responsible, but he somehow managed to escape Touda."

"He escaped the fires of hell?" Quatre exclaimed.

"The Shinigami managed to escape with some help from his partner. It is his partner, Kurosaki Hisoka, who claims that Muraki Kazutaka is still alive. The Shinigami, Tsuzuki Asato, backs him up."

"How does this Kurosaki know?" Merian asked.

"I don't know. We could ask… I can probably call him on the vidphone, although he'll be off duty now, or he should be."

"I got a contact number for his partner from Chief Konoe over there when he said that… Tsuzuki? Was being difficult. I guess we could try that."

"Ok, lets do it."

After a bit of manoeuvring, all four managed to get into a position where they could see the screen and still breathe. Then Heero punched in the number and there was a breathless silence as they waited for someone to pick up.

"Moshi Moshi. Dare desu ka?" A young man with piercing green eyes asked. Quatre jumped slightly. This kid sounded remarkably similar to Heero at the beginning of the war!

"Sanq Enmacho. Kurosaki-san?"

"Hai."

"Good. Yuy, Heero. With me are Chang Wufei and Chang Merian from China and Winner-Barton Quatre from L4. His partner, Winner-Barton Trowa will be arriving tomorrow. Have you been informed of the case we are trying to solve."

"Only that it is in Sanq, and that Tsuzuki doesn't want to take it, although he says that I may go if I want."

Quatre was amazed at how calm the boy was. His green eyes were so knowing, and yet from the look of him he couldn't be more than 16! Although, the blond reminded himself, that meant nothing. They had all reverted back to looking as if they were 21 once they died, although Merian looked younger. He still wasn't sure why and he didn't like to ask

"Do you want to?"

"It depends."

"Kurosaki-san, could you please tell us how you know that Muraki is alive," Quatre asked.

For the first time, the slim teen seemed disturbed. He swallowed, and looked around nervously. "Is this vital?" he asked.

"The case bears some startling parallels to the case in Kyoto. And if we have proof that Muraki is still alive, he would be our main suspect, and we would have some idea of how to draw him out. Or we could figure out how to draw him out," Wufei said.

Hisoka nodded. "Ok."

The quartet watched as the Shinigami rolled back the sleeve of the blue sweatshirt he was wearing, to reveal a strange pattern. Due to the quality of the vid screen, they couldn't figure out if it was a tattoo or a series of scars.

"Muraki killed me," Hisoka admitted quietly. "I saw one of his murders. He, uh, took away my memory of that night after cursing me. Everyone thought I died of an illness, and incurable illness, but it was the curse. I became a Shinigami to find out who killed me. So far we have brushed with Muraki three times, and each time he has managed to escape. This is the physical evidence of the curse. If Muraki was dead, it would have faded."

"Thank you, Kurosaki-san."

Those startling green eyes eyed the group carefully. "Muraki's possible presence changes everything. We will come, if I have to drag Tsuzuki kicking and screaming. But I suspect that I won't have to. Muraki is obsessed with my partner, for reasons that you will have to hear from Tsuzuki, as I only really know what I pick up. We will be with you in a few days."

"Wait! What do you mean, pick up?" Quatre asked.

"I am an empath."

"Oh, me too!" Quatre said excitedly. "Maybe we will be able to work together to help figure out something."

"All right," Hisoka paused, as if considering what to say. "Have some cakes ready."

"What?" Heero asked.

"Have some cakes ready for Tsuzuki. You might find him more willing to co-operate."

With those last cryptic words, Hisoka cut the link, leaving the four in Sanq with a screen full of static.

"Well, that was informative," Quatre commented, standing up and stretching the kinks out of his back. "Anyone for dinner? Heero, where's the nearest restaurant? Come on, I'm starving!"

ooooooooooooooo

Hisoka looked up as Tsuzuki bounced into the office. Tsuzuki was a morning person, once he was up and dressed. Before coffee, he was alert, but serious, as Hisoka had discovered after the case in Kyoto. He had also discovered that Tsuzuki was the lightest sleeper that he had ever seen, and automatically reached for something under his pillow when he woke.

"Morning, Hisoka!"

"Morning. We're going to Sanq."

Tsuzuki's mood immediately dropped. "No. I told you, I don't work there."

"There's an extremely high probability that Muraki's got something to do with this case."

Tsuzuki's violet eyes were unreadable as he nodded and turned to leave the office. "I'll tell Konoe we're leaving. You get the plane tickets. I'll meet you out front with your baggage in an hour and a half. Do we know how long this case will last?"

"Until the murderer is caught."

"Ok. You can fill me in on the rest on the plane."

It was almost surreal how Tsuzuki changed from a happy-go-lucky baka to a focused, serious Shinigami, Hisoka thought as he booked their tickets to Sanq for a flight at 1pm. Next he headed to the conference room, searching for Tatsumi. If the secretary didn't know that they were going, they wouldn't get the money they needed, after all.

"Ohaiyo, Tatsumi-san. Tsuzuki and I are off to Sanq after all."

"How did you get him to change his mind?"

"Muraki could be there."

"Ah. All right, I want you to check in every day. Muraki is dangerous."

"They already have people there from China and the colonies, so I think we will be well protected."

"Still, I want you to check in. Here's a cash card, try not to spend too much, but if Tsuzuki needs comforting, go all out. We both know how Muraki affects him."

"Arigato, Tatsumi-san. That's very kinda of you."

"Keeping Tsuzuki sane is not counted as a wasteful expenditure. Have a nice flight."

"Keep the office together in our absence."

"Don't worry, I'm sire Watari will keep us entertained. Now, go pack."

"Sayonara."

I have the series on DVD, but I've only read a few of the manga. I know that some things, particularly Tsuzuki's past, are more unclear there. I will mostly be following the TV series timelines and relationships between characters, ok?


	3. Conspiracy

Ok, explanations at the bottom, those who asked head there first! Apologies if the switches between Tsuzuki and Duo confuse you – I refer to him as Duo when he's dwelling on the past, mostly.

x

Resting his head on his hand, Hisoka stared out of the window, bored. Tsuzuki was reading through the case file – that Yuy Heero person had sent it early that morning apparently – so he didn't have anything to do.

Suddenly he blinked as something colourful and square was waved under his nose.

"Here, helps with the boredom," Tsuzuki told him with a wink, before turning back to his papers. "You have to get each side all the same colour."

"How did you know I was bored?"

"Long flights are always boring. I was on more than enough of those when I was a teenager to know that."

"Did you fly a lot?"

"Yeah, once 'Scythe was upgraded. Beat stealing large trucks," Duo replied absently,

"Nani! Stealing trucks? And what's a Scythe?" Hisoka asked. He remembered that Duo Maxwell's Gundam had been called Deathscythe, but he decided to play dumb and see how much Tsuzuki was willing to tell him.

"Uh…. Oops? Forget I said that."

"Iie, you did say it. And I want to know more."

"Woah, Hisoka, what a time to develop curiosity."

"Baka. What's a 'Scythe?"

"Deathscythe was a mobile suit. I fought in the war."

"Demo…. But wouldn't you have been a teenager then?" Hisoka asked, mouth gaping.

"Hai. I was 15," Duo said, sighing. He might as well tell his partner, there was nothing else to do on the flight. So long as he didn't give away too much – like how he had been a Gundam Pilot, he would be ok.

"Will you tell me anything else?" Hisoka asked, feeling the waves of sadness and loss radiating from his partner.

"Iie, not if I can help it. I don't like to remember the war."

"I'll bet. I'll stop bothering you now. Go back to your papers," Hisoka said, looking at the strange, multi-coloured cube in his hands. Well, he had nothing else to do… if he clicked this bit around twice, then that one once, all that row were blue…

oooooooooooooooooooo

The airport was fairly deserted, as theirs was the only flight in at that moment. They were met at the 'Arrivals' gate by a petite Chinese woman. Try as he might, Tsuzuki couldn't figure out even an approximate age for her.

"Konnichi'wa. Watashi wa Chang Merian desu."

"Tsuzuki Asato soshite Kurosaki Hisoka," Tsuzuki told her with a smile, wondering why her name sounded so familiar. Chang was Wufei's surname, but seeing as his entire colony had self-destructed, he wasn't surprised that there was a Shinigami with that surname.

"Please call me Merian. There is a car waiting for us outside, and once we get there, I'll show you straight to your rooms, then I'm afraid that I'll have to drag you off to meet the gang."

"That's fine. Arigatou."

"We know that you must be tired, so we'll try to keep the meeting as quick as possible. Then someone will decide what we're doing for dinner, and we can all get to know each other a little better over food."

"Sounds good, after all, you have to know each other at least a little to work well together."

Merian gave them a dazzling smile. "Why, that's exactly what I said! Hey, Kurosaki-san, don't you talk?"

Hisoka looked up from the cube he was still struggling over. "Huh? Nan desu ka?"

Tsuzuki grinned. "Don't mind him, I gave him that puzzle on the flight and he's been trying to solve it ever since."

"Baka," Hisoka grumbled. "This cube thing is impossible!"

"No its not, I've completed one of those before." Merian told him with a gentle smile. "Oh, here's our car. Put your luggage in the back, please."

The two visiting Shinigami complied, and soon found themselves zooming towards the Sanq branch of JuOhCho.

It was very different from their own Cherry blossom lined avenue. Instead, the Ministry was housed inside a large glass skyscraper, no cherry trees in sight. "Woah," Tsuzuki muttered, craning his head back. "Is that a helicopter on the roof?"

"Yes, there's a landing pad up there," Merian told him. "Come on in."

"That's a point, Hisoka, why couldn't Tatsumi have flown us over in the 'copter rather than making us take the 'plane?" Tsuzuki asked as they took a lift to their floor.

Hisoka sighed. "Probably because its only for emergencies. And besides, Tatsumi-san is probably needed back at EnMaCho."

"I supposed. Still, it would have been nice."

Hisoka rolled his eyes. "Baka."

The doors slid open and Merian lead them along the corridor to their room. "You'll have a suite to yourself, with room service," she told them. "Please do not abuse this. I'll just show you around quickly," she slid a keycard into the slot by the door, "and then we can go meet the others."

"Wakarimashita."

The suite had large windows and a pale colour scheme. One bedroom was blue, the other green. En suite bathrooms were all in cream, matching the main living area. Hisoka took the green room and dumped his bag at the foot of the bed without comment. Tsuzuki took the blue room, looking around absently before taking a sheaf of papers out of his bag and heading back to where Merian was standing by the door.

"Its very nice, domo arigatou."

"Hai. We're ready to go now," Hisoka added, coming up behind him.

"Iko! This way."

The short Chinese Shinigami lead them back to the elevators, down three floors and into a large office.

"Konbanwa, minna-san. Here's Tsuzuki-san and Kurosaki-san," she said cheerfully.

Tsuzuki swept large, astonished, purple eyes over the room and wanted to faint. They were all there, all of the other pilots! He swallowed and took refuge behind formality as they all introduced themselves. He looked nothing like he had during the war, and they didn't seem to recognise him… he was glad, he didn't think he could cope with the questioning. A glance at Wufei made him blanch in shock. What had he done to his hair?

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hisoka looked around the office, his eyes resting on the tall man with a very distinctive hairstyle. When he was introduced as Trowa Barton-Winner, it all became clear. He had been a Gundam pilot! And hadn't one of the others been called Winner? He looked at the blond standing next to him. Yes, Quatre Winner. So, they were married? And that Japanese Shinigami with the blue eyes, he had been a pilot too, hadn't he? The Chinese man too, the one with braided hair that had been in a tight ponytail in the photo, although a wife had never been mentioned. Maybe she had died first?

Hisoka blinked as it occurred to him. All five pilots were in the same place! But the other four didn't seem to recognise Tsuzuki… Duo. Although he did look different, the hair for one thing. Hisoka was wondering what had happened to his braid when Tsuzuki tapped him on the shoulder.

"Ne, Hisoka, they want to talk about Muraki. I've already asked Gushoshin to send our reports on the cases here."

"Oh, ano, ok. What do you want to know?"

"How would you describe him generally?" Heero asked.

"Deranged. Obsessed. Dangerous. Like a cat, likes to play with things before killing them."

"Any suggestions on how to draw him out?" Quatre asked.

Tsuzuki looked grim. "Want a stake out, find a china doll shop. Want to draw him out, set Hisoka or myself on the streets in plain view. I'd guarantee he'd make a move to capture one of us."

"Why?"

Hisoka shuddered. "He'd… he'll want his doll back."

Eyes narrowed, Tsuzuki gripped him by the shoulders. "Don't talk about yourself like that, Hisoka! And don't worry, I'd never let him do anything like that to you again! You're my partner, remember?"

"Demo…"

"I said no, Hisoka! And if there's any drawing out to do, I'll do it. I won't let you put yourself into his hands again."

"Um, excuse me, but what are to talking about? Kurosaki-san is obviously not a doll?" Quatre asked.

"When Hisoka said that Muraki was like a cat, he wasn't joking. Muraki enjoys playing with Hisoka especially. After our first case together… he used mind control to capture Hisoka and then tied him up with a charm made of woman's hair – the blood loss alone nearly killed him. I was able to get to him in time, and we ended up merging our powers, after, well, let's just say that it wasn't pretty.

"Next time it was me he was playing with more, although the way he manipulated Tsubaki-hime affected Hisoka. Last time…me again, really. But he was the one who murdered Hisoka. Who cursed him. And I will not allow him to torture him further."

"But Tsuzuki, he enjoys torturing you more than he enjoys torturing me."

"I can take it. You're only 16, Hisoka!"

"And last time he had you, you nearly committed suicide, have you forgotten that! He tried to use your body to resurrect his dead brother so that he could kill him himself!"

"Don't try to use the suicide thing as a reason, I would have taken him with me, and self-destructing is looked on favourably by this group!"

The two Shinigami glared at each other, neither willing to back down. Smiling nervously, Wufei decided to intervene.

"Ahem. I agree with Tsuzuki-san. We will not allow you to draw him out, Kurosaki-san. But neither will we allow Tsuzuki-san to fall into his hands alone."

"Nani? And please, call me just Tsuzuki. Everyone else does."

"Whenever you go out, Tsuzuki, one or more of us will be with you."

"No arguments!" Heero said firmly, seeing that Tsuzuki was about to open his mouth and protest. "I will not compromise your safety for the sake of the mission."

"Haven't changed, have you Heero?" Tsuzuki muttered under his breath. Louder, he said "Wakarimashita. Are we done for now? I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry," Hisoka muttered.

"Come on, there's a lovely Mexican place three streets away. We'll go there," Quatre said with a smile.

ooooooooooooooooo

As they filed out of the office, he caught Trowa's arm and held him back slightly. "Trowa…"

"What is it, love?"

"Something Tsuzuki said… self-destructing is looked on favourably by this group. It sounds like he knows us."

"It does, doesn't it?"

"Do you think he was the one checking up on us, like Heero said?"

"Maybe… although that didn't come up in the records. Do you read anything from him?"

"That's what's got me the most worried."

"Love?"

"He… he almost feels like Duo."

"Duo Maxwell? Our Duo?"

"Yes. I only know what I feel, but from what I remember the readings are similar."

"But… if he was Duo, he would have told us. I mean, what's the point in hiding?"

Quatre pulled his husband along the corridor after the others, not willing to fall too far behind. "Not necessarily. He may not remember us, but I don't think its that. He disappeared, way back then. Maybe… maybe he was hiding, maybe someone took him from us. Maybe they did something to him which has made him ashamed of himself, I don't know. But Tsuzuki Asato is not exactly the same as Duo Maxwell. Something has changed in him, if they are the same person."

Trowa sighed. He knew his little love well. "And you are determined to find out what, aren't you?"

"Yes."

Rolling his eyes, Heavyarms' pilot decided that if he didn't help now, he would be forced to later anyway. "Go through Kurosaki. I have a feeling that you will have more luck." He got a blinding smile and a soft kiss as a reward.

"Thanks, love. Now, lets catch them up before they suspect us of something more than kissing in the corridor!"

oooooooooooooooooooo

Hisoka looked around the busy restaurant and tried not to cringe too visibly. There were so many people! And he had never had Mexican before… there were strange, tantalising smells on the air, none of which he recognised. Yuy-san led them to a table bit enough for all of them, and he hesitated before sitting down. Where should he sit? Next to Tsuzuki?

A hand on his shoulder distracted him, and he turned to face a pair of sympathetic aquamarine eyes. "Overwhelming, isn't it?" the blond Arabian asked. "Sit with Trowa and myself. I promise we don't bite!"

"Hai, Winner-san."

"And for goodness sake call us Quatre and Trowa. Can well call you Hisoka?"

"Yes, I don't see why not."

"So, I'm guessing from your reaction that you've never had Mexican before?"

"Um, that's right."

"Don't worry, I'll explain the menu to you. Do you like chicken?"

"Yes."

Hisoka found himself relaxing between Quatre's bright laughter and Trowa's indulging silence, tempered by the odd soft comment or smile. He glanced at his partner across the table, where he was deep in conversation with Merian, and smiled. Maybe things in Sanq wouldn't be too bad.

"So, Hisoka, how long have you known Tsuzuki?"

"Since I started work. He was my first partner. We've been working together for a while now."

"Do you get on?"

"Yes, although sometimes we argue."

"Oh? What about?"

"Stupid things, really. He says I need to open up more, but he never lets anyone beyond his own masks. We fight about that occasionally. And he's always eating, and never seems to take things seriously, well, that's what I used to think. But he can be very serious and very deadly when he wants to be. He cares very deeply for people and he never lies."

Hisoka heard Trowa draw his breath in sharply at his last statement, but before he could question it, the waitress arrived, ready to take their orders. The young empath turned to Quatre, eyes pleading.

"Please can you order for me? Something nice?"

"Sure, Hisoka. Don't worry. What do you want to drink?"

"No alcohol!" Tsuzuki called across the table.

"Same to you, baka!" Hisoka returned. "We don't want a repeat of the time Muraki tried to convince you that you weren't human!"

"We don't want a repeat of the time you passed out on my bed either!"

Their dinner companions blinked at the teasing banter going on. "I see you two have stories to tell," Wufei commented. Hisoka blinked at him in surprise.

"Not really," Tsuzuki said with a shrug. "Our lives just seem to be full of surprises, that's all."

"May you live in interesting times," Wufei muttered.

"Hey, don'tchya curse me, Fei-Fei!" Duo protested. He then blanched, realising what he had let slip.

Merian looked at the now blushing Shinigami curiously. "Fei-Fei?"

"Uh, seemed appropriate?"

"What would you like to drink, Sirs?" the waitress asked firmly, cutting through the conversation. Tsuzuki shot her a grateful glance.

"Orange juice, onegai. Uh, please."

Quatre gave Trowa a meaningful glance. The tallest Shinigami at the table rolled his eyes. Hisoka looked from one to the other and blinked in confusion. Something was going on here, but he wasn't sure what.

x

Hyperness:

1. Yeah, everyone's dead. However, they can still interact with mortals. They don't age, they can go into a spiritual form and be invisible, and they can fly.

2. A Shinigami is a 'Guardian of Death'. They "guide the lost souls who wander the mortal world" to quote the opening lines. Basically, if anyone dies but their soul does not return (ie: they have been made into a zombie) or if people's lives have mysteriously lengthened etc, the Shinigami look into it. They do other things too, but that basically it.

3. Naw, Duo's dead. They all are now, 'cept for Relena and Mariamaia. Duo died first, in fact, a good 40/50 years before the others ('cept for Merian). Tsuzuki's story is basically that he was ostracised because of the colour of his eyes all of his life, and eventually captured by a doctor (the grandfather of the main bad guy, Muraki). He survived for 8 years with out eating, drinking or sleeping (except for when he was unconscious) for most of this he was "incapable of rational thought) one January, he managed to commit suicide, slashing his wrists, and finally ended his torment. Muraki found out about him while looking through his Grandfather's belongings and became obsessed with him. He is fond of sexually harassing him, and once said "I may have to kill you because I love you so much."

Despite a fairly tragic past, Tsuzuki presents a cheerful face to the world, although he is actually a very troubled person. He is serious when the situation calls for it, but tried to cheer up everyone around him by acting childish. (Sound like Duo?) He is fond of flirting and all the girls immediately swoon over him. He flirts with Hisoka quite a lot (although 'Soka doesn't reciprocate).

Hisoka came from a traditional, well off family, who hated his empathic ability, called him a freak and locked him in a cage every time he used his ability. He's a withdrawn, socially incompetent person (Sound like Heero?), with a dislike for crowds (all the emotions overwhelm him). He was hurt a lot in the past – the night when Muraki cursed him, he also raped him – but Tsuzuki (with some help from the others) has managed to draw him out of his shell a little. In 70 years, he's the only partner who looks like he has a good change of working with Tsuzuki long term (everyone else gave up. Tatsumi lasted 3 months, I don't know about the others. Hisoka lasted at least 2 years as far as I could gather from the anime, and it looked like it was going to go on for longer).

That answer some questions?


	4. Dreaming

That night, the first night that all five Gundam pilots had been under the same roof in more than seventy years, Duo dreamed of the past. As his room shared a wall with Hisoka, the young empath also picked up on the dream. Hisoka's room backed on to the room Quatre and Trowa were sharing, and the blond also found himself in Duo's head.

It was a strange, misty and unfocused parody of a safe house. Duo sat on the bed, one towel wrapped loosely around his waist and the other crumpled in a damp heap at his feet. He was brushing his hair and singing softly.

"All I want is a room somewhere…

Far away from th' cold night air….

Oh, wouldn't it be loverly?"

Duo finished with the section he was brushing and moved it over his shoulder, before gathering another chunk of tangles and starting on that.

"Lots of choc'lat for me to eat

Lots of coal makin' lots o' heat

Warm face, warm 'ands, warm feet-

Oh, wouldn't it be loverly?"

Once all his hair was shiny and smooth, Duo carefully separated it into three sections and began to braid.

"Oh, so, loverly sittin' abso-bloomin'-lutely still….

I would never stir 'till sun, crept, over the windowsill!

Someone's 'ead restin' on my knee….

Warm an' tender as 'e can be….

Who takes good care o' me

Oh wouldn't it be loverly

Loverly, loverly, loverly, loverly…"

Suddenly the room shattered, and the dreamer and his two voyeurs found themselves in the cockpit of a Gundam. Hisoka didn't know where he was, and all Quatre knew was that it wasn't Wing Zero or Sandrock. This confused him, as he hardly ever dreamed of the Gundams, and given Duo's presence he would guess that it was Deathscythe. He would have assumed that he was picking up on Trowa's dream, but he didn't think that Duo had ever let anyone else pilot his big black Gundam.

Perplexed, Quatre watched as the dream unfolded.

Duo was sitting in the pilot's chair.

"Ok, old buddy. Here we go again. We even appear to have company. How nice of them to join us…"

As the braided teen began to pilot, Quatre leaned over his shoulder and looked at the screens and monitors. Duo appeared to be alone, without backup. 'I wonder when this was. Or whose dream this is for that matter. I almost wish I could wake up…"

The battle continued, with Duo emerging victorious, but with a battered Gundam. He called Howard on a secure line, and began his descent to Earth. However, before he had even tapped in the co-ordinates there was a jolt from behind as something attacked Deathscythe. The cockpit was damaged, broken equipment sending sparks everywhere. Something burst into flames.

And the scene shattered like a broken mirror. The innards of Deathscythe were gone, but the flames remained, smoldering over ruined pews and licking around a broken cross. Small bodies lay amongst the wreckage, and Duo, much younger now and wearing strange clothes was sobbing besides a woman with long hair.

"Sister Helen, Sister Helen!"

The lady was lying sprawled in the rubble with obvious broken bones and blood trickling from her mouth and forehead.

"No! Not like Solo, please, not like Solo!"

The scene shifted again, and Sister Helen morphed into a boy with long dirty hair held back by a ragged bandana leaning against the wall of an alleyway.

"Look after them, Kid…" he whispered weakly, before turning his head and coughing. Blood splattered over the grimy bricks.

"SOLO!"

Quatre woke with a start. Trowa was curled lazily behind him, one slender hand resting easily on his stomach, the sheets covering them up to their shoulders. The room was dark and slightly eerie – he had become used to their bedroom back on L4 and waking up in an unfamiliar place was now strange. Of course, during the war it was something he had become used to, but the war was over 80 years ago now.

Trowa sighed and shifted in his sleep, drawing Quatre closer. The blond snuggled back, enjoying sharing the warmth. A quick probe around and he was certain that Heero, Wufei and Merian were all ok. Hisoka was agitated… maybe he had tuned into the dream as well, Quatre reasoned. Tsuzuki was also distressed. Quatre closed his eyes. He was groggy and simply couldn't be bothered to figure it out.

It didn't take long for Quatre to sink back into the sticky embrace other of sleep.

Hisoka's eyes snapped open and he sat up quickly, fisting his hands in the blankets. A whispered word turned up the lights, showing him that the room was exactly the same as it had been when he had fallen asleep.

"Tsuzuki…"

He knew that it had been his partner's dream; it had had the 'feel' of Tsuzuki running all through it. He hadn't understood it, but he guessed that seeing the other pilots had sparked off memories. He needed to check on him.

Hisoka moved quietly through the dim suite, not as quietly as he would have liked – his loose clothing rubbed and his footsteps made a slight thumping sound – but then he was in his more human form. He had a feeling that Tsuzuki would make no sound unless he meant to no matter what he was wearing.

Tsuzuki was curled up in his bed, his face in a patch of moonlight that stained the sheets silver. There was something glittering on his face… moving closer Hisoka was shocked to find that there were tears on his cheeks.

The young empath reached out to brush them away, and suddenly found his wrist caught in a steel grip.

"Ah! Itai! Tsuzuki, it's me! Hisoka!" he hissed, trying not to wake his partner. Fortunately, Tsuzuki appeared to recognize his voice.

"'Soka…" he muttered, pulling the boy closer.

"Baka. Well, you've obviously had a nightmare, so I'll stay for a bit. Just a bit, hai?" Hisoka muttered, mainly to himself. He sat on the bed next to Tsuzuki, and yelped as the older man pulled him close, hugging him like a teddy bear. "Fine." He told his sleeping partner as, grimacing, he settled down to sleep again.

Being held by Tsuzuki was oddly comforting, and it didn't take long for Hisoka to drop off again.

He woke alone, still in Tsuzuki's bed. The depression in the sheets beside him was cold, and the shower was running. Still half asleep, he stumbled back into his own room to get ready for the day.

ooooooooooooooooooooooo

"We should defiantly be visible," Hisoka pointed out. "How can we draw him out if he is not aware that we are here?"

"He has a point, Tsuzuki."

"I know that! I just… fine. Fine. So long as one of us goes with him." (1)

"Of course. That was the agreement," Quatre pointed out. "I will go. Hisoka, I know that you came here on very short notice. I'm guessing that you forgot to pack some things?" Hisoka nodded. "Ok, we will go shopping then."

"But-"

"Don't worry, I have many, many personal funds not associated with JuMoCho or my former person."

"What?"

"Fake accounts created during the war," Trowa said. "We all have them."

"If Quatre accessed his own accounts, someone would notice because he's technically dead. There would be some sort of scandal. However, the other accounts are safe to use," Tsuzuki explained.

"My own accounts all went out in my will anyway. Mostly to relatives, some to charity."

"I get it now," Hisoka said. "Shopping sounds good."

"Good."

"Quatre, what charities did you leave money to?" Duo asked, trying not to sound too interested.

"Mostly orphanages. There are no more war orphans now – although I helped set up several orphanages while there still were – but the orphanages remain and they always need funding."

"Ah, I just wondered."

"Were you in the war, Tsuzuki?" Heero asked.

"Yes, I was. I know that you were the Gundam Pilots too, but I thought there were five of you? Unless one was female, and no one knew."

Merian laughed. "No, no, I died about three years before the main war started. I don't know much about the fifth pilot myself. Perhaps you can enlighten us, now that we have time?"

"Second."

"Nan?" Hisoka questioned.

"Duo Maxwell was pilot 02. He was the second. Wufei was 05, the fifth. I was 03, Quatre 04 and Heero 01," Trowa supplied.

Quatre smiled. "Duo was…. So energetic. Always joking, he had a morbid, cynical sense of humor. He liked loud music with lots of drums and electronic guitar. But he could also be very quiet when he had to. He was our stealth and demolitions expert."

"He liked to play practical jokes," Wufei continued, "But he knew how to be serious when he had to be. He could get out of almost any situation, and if the door had a lock he could pick it. His Gundam was the stealthiest and the fastest, probably the best in close combat, even if it couldn't match the firepower of Wing, Heavyarms and Nataku."

Quatre pouted. "Hmph, everyone beat Sandrock."

"He was a good Gundam, strategy wise, and the best in the desert," Heero pointed out.

"But he was pretty crap," Trowa added.

Quatre stared at his lover in shock for a few seconds, then narrowed his eyes. "SOMEONE is sleeping on the couch tonight!" he announced.

"Uh, ok, thanks for telling us a bit about Duo. Why do you think he isn't a Shinigami too?"

Heero shrugged. "Maybe he isn't dead yet. Or maybe he went straight to hell just like he always said he would."

"Huh?"

"Duo was raised by Catholics. He carried a lot of their teachings with him, even if he claimed not to believe in it. He was influenced by the church."

Tsuzuki cleared his throat. "So, Hisoka, you're going shopping with Quatre? Better go now and avoid the rush. Merian, is there a dojo in the building? I'd like to get some practice in."

"Oh course, Tsuzuki. Follow me. You guys, get some surveillance equipment on Quatre and Hisoka. You never know, Muraki might strike. Contact Tsuzuki and myself immediately if that happens."

"Ryokai.,"

"Bu xie." (2)

"Sì."

Merian rolled her eyes, muttered something that sounded insulting in Mandarin and tugged Tsuzuki out of the room by the sleeve.

Once they had gone, Heero started to dig around in a drawer. "Hisoka, do you have your ears pierced?" he asked.

"Iie."

"Ok. Take this pendant then. Hide it under your shirt. Quatre, here's a plain gold stud. It's a miniature radio, ok? Both sends and receives. Hisoka, yours is a tracker and a recorder. It will automatically send information to my computer. However, you will not be able to hear anything from us."

"Wakata."

"Understood. We will be leaving now, then. Hisoka, do you like coffee?" Quatre asked as they walked out of the room.

"I prefer hot chocolate or tea."

"There's a starbucks a few streets over, inside the shopping mall. We'll go there first, and figure out what we need to buy. I'm not overly familiar with the city myself, it was quite a few years since I was here last, although I did used to come here regularly when I was alive."

"Why was that?"

"Oh, this country is quite important politically, there were many meetings and conferences held here. But also, Relena lives here, and we were good friends while we were alive. I cannot let her see me now, of course, although she would expect me to look old, rather than the age I do now."

"Why do you look this age?"

"We got a sort of choice. See, most Shinigami are those who died fairly young, yes?"

"Hai."

"But we are different. We all lived out our lives, but decided to become Shinigami to try to atone a bit more for what we did during the wars. However, having 60 or 70 year old men running around wouldn't be very productive. So the Powers That Be decided that if we all picked an age, we could return to looking and feeling like we were that age. We all picked around 20, as you can see."

"What about Merian?"

"Well, she was about 13 when she died, but she is very, very stubborn, and determined to be a Shinigami. So they made an allowance and allowed her to age for five years. So she looks like she would have when she was 18, despite having been a Shinigami for 80 years."

"Longer than Tsuzuki," Hisoka commented as they reached the mall.

"Yes, but Tsuzuki is more powerful. That's why we wanted him to help out."

"Oh. Makes sense."

"Besides, you two have had experience with Muraki before. Now, what would you like to drink?"

They chatted some more over their drinks, establishing what had been forgotten and what could be borrowed.

"So you forgot a hairbrush, but you brought your fighting clothes?" Quatre laughed. Hisoka blushed.

"They seemed more important at the time. Tsuzuki just snapped 'leaving in 90 minutes, you book the tickets' at me. I didn't exactly have time to dawdle," he protested.

"Ok, ok," Quatre allowed, still giggling. "We'll got get you one of those first."

"Ano…I also need to buy gifts for others in EnMaCho. It's kinda a tradition."

"In that case I will help you make sure that it is followed."

"Domo Arigato."

"You're welcome."

As they left the coffee shop, they failed to notice the four men in dark clothing who fell silently into step a few paces behind them. As they passed a staff door, the thugs pounced.

Hisoka felt a damp cloth being pressed against his nose and mouth, and then everything swirled into darkness. His last thought was 'Tsuzuki will save me again, won't he? He is… my… partner…"

(1) anyone notice that he's referring to the Gundam Pilots as 'us'?

(2) "Sure" in mandarin, according to some website. I will put mandarin phrases in occasionally, I guess, especially in scenes between Wufei and Merian.


	5. Relevations

So, so sorry for the delay! I have an excuse, however; I've been ill. It sucks. I hate being ill. Beta'd by Atalanta Yuy – kudo's to her!

Quatre groaned as he swam slowly back into consciousness. There was a familiar smell in the air… a smell that evoked back memories… and he could feel bands of cool metal around his wrist and ankle.

Opening his eyes he squinted in the bright light. Before him was an operating table, with restraints built in around the edges. He managed to match the smell – a mix of chemicals, old blood and fear. His ankle was chained to a ring at floor level, and his wrist to another that kept it at about the height of his waist. If he sat it would be over his head, but it could be worse, he mused. He could have both hands chained above his head.

A groan to his left made him look sideways. Hisoka was slumped against the wall, his eyes moving swiftly behind closed lids as he fought his way back to consciousness.

"'Soka?" Quatre croaked, his mouth tasting disgusting. His vision was slightly blurry as well, and he recognized the symptoms of being drugged. He supposed that Hisoka felt much worse; he hadn't had the training of a Gundam Pilot.

"….Hai?" the teen muttered weakly.

"Daijoubu ka?" Quatre asked, figuring that Japanese would probably get through to him quicker while he was still groggy.

"…Daijoubu."

"Sou da."

"…Quatre-sama?"

"Hai?"

"Doko desu?"

"Abunai, Hisoka-kun. Akunin."

"…Shimatta. Muraki-san?"

"Shirimasen."

"Wakata." translation at end.

The former pilot snapped his head up quickly as the door opened, its slow creak sending shivers down his spine. Every sense he had screamed 'danger!' A figure dressed all in white strode into the room. Hisoka let out a terrified whimper and shrank back against the wall. Quatre could feel fear rolling off him in waves.

"Ah, Quatre Winner and Kurosaki Hisoka. I see that you are awake."

"What do you want with us?" Quatre asked.

"From you? Nothing really. I'm quite glad to have my little doll back, however. I will enjoy seeing if the changes Tsuzuki-san has painstakingly wrought upon him can be undone."

"Hisoka is not a doll!"

"Temper, temper, Mr. Winner. Please keep calm. I will enjoy studying you also, from what I know of you, you have a rather… unique background. I will enjoy studying you also."

"You don't know what you are getting into. The others will come for us."

Muraki laughed, the sound sending a shiver down Quatre's spine. The fear from Hisoka increased. "Why, Mr. Winner, I am counting on that. I do hope that Tsuzuki-san will be among them, I will so enjoy meeting with him again.

"You're sick, Muraki," Hisoka hissed. "Leave Tsuzuki alone! He never did anything to you and yet you continuously torture him!"

"Of course I do. He is so beautiful with that shining brown hair and those lovely violet eyes – eyes that no human being has, no matter how much you insist he is human."

"Actually, you're wrong there," Quatre interrupted.

"What?"

"I knew a human with purple eyes. His name was Duo Maxwell. He was fully human – we have the DNA to prove it. So there you have it; another human with purple eyes."

Muraki snorted and swept out of the room. A few seconds later, the lights turned out. The smell of disinfectant was suddenly more pronounced. Some machinery was humming nearby, in another room.

"Quatre?" Hisoka's tentative voice broke through the darkness. Quatre felt the shards of fear slice through him, a mix of remembrance, apprehension and foreboding.

"Don't worry, I'm still here."

"Um… don't you think it strange that both Duo Maxwell and Tsuzuki have the same colour eyes?"

"It is rather odd, I agree," Quatre said calmly, keeping a tight reign on his emotions.

"Did… I know that dreams can be shared. Last night, I had a dream that was not my own."

"Really? I did too."

"In this dream, there was a battle, and someone with purple eyes and long brown hair. Was that what you dreamed?"

"Yes, among other things. I couldn't identify the dreamer… I would have guessed Trowa, only the boy with the braid was Duo, and so that cockpit was Deathscythe's. I don't think that Duo ever let anyone else pilot his Gundam."

"That dream… it was Tsuzuki's."

"How do you know?"

"I've walked his dreams before, and it had his signature."

"But that would mean…"

"Hai."

"That's impossible!"

"That's what I thought at first. But Maxwell vanished, right? Pretty much straight after the wars?"

"Right."

"Muraki's Grandfather kept Tsuzuki captive for eight years before Tsuzuki managed to end his life. He's been a Shinigami for more than 70."

"I suppose… wow. He looks totally different… without his braid, that is," Quatre mused, trying to realign the facts in his mind, now that Hisoka had confirmed his suspicions.

"I guess the scientist cut it off."

"It did take a lot of looking after," the blond said with a grin of remembrance. The first time he had spent time with Duo, when they had hidden in the desert, he had introduced the L2 street rat to conditioner. His reaction had been… amusing. At first he had regarded Quatre suspiciously, cautiously taking the bottle like it a stick of dynamite and sniffing it. Then a slow grin had spread across his features, immediately eclipsed by a look of worry.

_Hey, Quatre, are you sure? This smells really nice… I bet it's expensive. You don't have to waste it on- on me._

Quatre's own reply echoed in his ears. _Why not? It's not like I can spend money on much else at the moment! Why not spend it on a friend?_

_A friend?_

_Yes, a friend._

Duo's face had been incredulous, and he had almost suffocated Quatre in a hug. The blond, not seeing quite what the big deal was, had shoved him away playfully and mock ordered him to bathe before he did that again… He had realized later how much that gesture had meant to Duo, but the pilot had been gone by the time Quatre took a trip to L2 – to look for him, in fact – and had seen with his own eyes the conditions that Duo had grown up in. That was the real reason for the orphanages…

"This would explain why he didn't want to come to Sanq. I guess that Relena Peacecraft and Mariamaia Barton would maybe recognize him," Hisoka said, breaking his train of thought and cutting short his trip down memory lane.

"It does make sense. Oh… whatever are we going to say to the others?"

"Don't tell them."

"What? We've got to!"

"No. Tsuzuki chose to keep this quiet. It's only because of our abilities that we found out. If he wanted it known, he would have said anything. The others have got to either figure it out on their own, or wait for him to tell them himself."

"Ok. He always was good at running and hiding."

"What?" Hisoka asked, straining to see Quatre in the darkness.

"It was his motto. 'I may run and I may hide but I never tell a lie!' he stuck to it too."

"So… if we asked him straight out he'd tell us the truth?"

"Anything that he told us would be the truth, but he's also very good at avoiding the subject. He may also be treating his life as Tsuzuki as an undercover role. If we were undercover, he had to lie to people. He'd always stick to the truth as closely as possible, but he'd make up stuff if he had to," Quatre explained.

"What do you mean?"

"Never mind, it's a long story."

"We have time. We're chained up in the dark for god's sake," Hisoka pointed out, tugging at his chains.

"Ok. Like… if he was boarding a shuttle in a hurry because he was being followed, he'd spout out this whole long epic about his bike running out of gas or the traffic being really bad. Stuff that has happened to him in the past, but hadn't actually happened that time. He just wouldn't mention that the time he got trapped in a lift or the time his best friend took a tumble out of a window actually happened months before."

"Who fell out a window?"

"Uh, Heero, technically. Actually, they blasted a hole in the side of a building, which happened to be on the edge of a cliff, and jumped out. Heero didn't open his parachute until it was a bit too late to do any good."

"Which floor?"

"The 30th."

"Man! Is that how he died?"

"What? No… he came out of it with a busted leg and some bruises. That was all. It was right at the beginning of the war."

"Oh my god…"

"They called him the 'Perfect Soldier'. It was an appropriate name."

There was silence in the room for a few minutes, then Hisoka admitted quietly. "I'm scared."

"Don't worry, Hisoka," Quatre said reassuringly. "They'll come rescue us. I hope Tsuzuki lets enough of Duo out to convince the others that he'd be the best for a stealthy infiltration."

"Huh?"

"Duo was our stealth and demolitions expert."

"What were you?"

"Strategy."

"Heero?"

"He was the leader. Wufei excelled in hand to hand combat, and Trowa could drive anything. He was an exceptionally good mechanic, plus he was an acrobat, of sorts. He can walk along telephone wires, that sort of thing. Duo could too, but Trowa can back flip on a tightrope."

"Wow."

"He used the circus as a cover during the war."

"Quatre?"

"Yes?"

"Don't stop talking, please. It… the dark seems more scary when you stop."

"Ok. Um… I'll tell you about the maguanac family then, shall I?"

"Ok."

"Well, I first met up with them when they hijacked the shuttle I was on…"

While Quatre talked himself hoarse in an attempt to keep both Hisoka and himself calm, the others were working themselves up to the point when tension headaches seemed a real danger.

"They should be back by now. Has Quatre still not answered his mobile?" Wufei asked.

"No. I'll try again," Trowa said calmly.

"Heero, what about the tracking devices?"

"They're being blocked. All I can get is static."

"Damn. What was the last thing we got?" Wufei asked, sitting on the edge of the desk and rubbing his forehead.

Heero played back the tape and frowned, listening intently on his headphones. "Scuffle…some swearing, 'the little bugger is heavier than he looks' in a male voice, speaking English, a door opening."

"I think we should get Merian and Tsuzuki back up here."

"Agreed. Trowa?"

"On it. Hello, is this the Dojo area? Yes… do you have a petite Chinese woman and a fairly tall brown haired man down there? … Good. Can you tell them that they are needed back up at the office, urgently. … Thank you. … Really? Oh. … Good bye."

"Well?"

"They'll be back up here soon. Tsuzuki is the best shot with a gun the guy has ever seen. Apparently rivals you, Heero."

Heero ran a hand through his messy hair. "Tsuzuki is turning out to be quite a mystery. I wouldn't mind knowing more about the guy. Anyone else notice how he walks almost silently if he's not thinking about it?"

"Yeah. He's also constantly on alert around us, even when he's kidding around."

"When he called me 'Fei-Fei' yesterday, he looked rather guilty, and as if he hadn't meant to say it and was wondering if I would take offense."

"Hm. He looked shocked, like it had slipped out automatically," Trowa said. "Kinda like your face back after the war when you would say things like 'mission accepted' without realizing it."

"Hm. Strange. Maybe he had a friend with a similar name, and that was their nickname," Wufei reasoned.

"Maybe. After all, he couldn't be someone you know. I don't think anyone ever calls you 'Fei-Fei'," Heero said thoughtfully.

"I think Duo might have, once or twice, way back during the war."

"Oh yeah, when you guys were going stir crazy in that Oz cell and I was playing undercover agent?"

"That would be when. Shutting us up in a cell with Maxwell was cruel and unusual punishment. Do you know how annoying 02 can be when he's bored?"

"I don't think I've ever had the misfortune to find out."

The door opened, causing three heads to snap around. Tsuzuki and Merian walked in, looking worried.

"What's going on?" Tsuzuki asked.

"Quatre isn't answering his cell, all the transmitters can pick up is static, and the last thing picked up was a struggle, cursing and a door opening.

"Fuck!" Tsuzuki was immediately all business, hammering questions at the dumbfounded pilots as he pulled his usual trench coat over his workout clothes and started to rummage frantically through his briefcase, pulling out Fuda cards with one hand and his laptop with the other. He immediately booted the machine up and waited impatiently for it to load.

"Um… what are you doing?" Merian asked tentatively. There was a light of… something… shining in the Shinigami's unusual eyes. The other pilots recognized it as something they had seen regularly on the battlefield.

"Contacting GuShoShin."

"Why?"

"What do you mean, why?" Duo asked scornfully as he tapped in his password. "Hisoka has been captured, I need to go after him. They need to know or there will be triple the paperwork once we get back…"

He turned his attention to the monitor and started tapping furiously. He kept one ear on the conversation that was going on around him, but the e-mail and wondering about Hisoka took up most of his concentration. Had his partner had his gun on him?

"Tsuzuki… do you have a plan?"

"Yes."

"Inform." Duo almost smiled. Heero had reverted to 'mission mode'. Good, having the  
Perfect Soldier by his side would make things easier.

"Use a spell to find where Hisoka is being held. Meanwhile, go to the mall where they were last seen. Pity it was both of them – Hisoka can track spiritual residue and I'm guessing Quatre can too. Try to see if I can play and beat whatever sick game Muraki is playing this time. Maybe play along, but not if it's poker."

"What!" Wufei exclaimed. That comment had been strangely out of context.

"Only Hisoka can beat Muraki at poker. Long story, but I have no intention of being the 'prize' this time."

A key was hit viscously, and the laptop was quickly shut down.

"All right, I'm going. Who will be my backup? Heero is a first choice, for obvious reasons."

"Ninmu Ryokai."

"Got your gun?"

"Zutto."

"Hai. Iko!"

"Wakata."

Merian stared at the door swinging closed behind them. They had moved in tandem, both understanding each other instinctively… as had Wufei. Merian recognized the signs; her husband was reacting the way he had in the war, and she guessed that Heero was too. But Tsuzuki? And what had he meant, 'for obvious reasons'? They had never met before!

Wufei squeezed her hand. "Lets try to see if we can get a lead."

"Ok."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Don't die on me, ok?"

"…what? Wufei-"

"This Muraki is dangerous," onyx eyes searched her own, a shadow of pain dimming their brightness. "I've lost you once before. I appreciate you now, the second time will probably kill me."

Merian nodded, and gave in to the impulse to hug him. "I'll be careful. And I know that you will be fighting at my side this time."

"Zutto."

TBC

Hey, incase someone hasn't looked it up, Zutto means 'always' or 'eternally'. I didn't mean to use it as much here as I have… It was supposed to just refer to Duo. sighs Oh well, it fits I guess!

Quatre and Hisoka's conversation:

Yes?

Are you all right?

I'm ok.

Ok.

Master Quatre?

Yes?

Where are we?

It's dangerous, Hisoka. Bad Person.

Damn it. Muraki?

I don't know.

I understand.


	6. China Doll

Tsuzuki will be referred to as Duo for quite a large portion of this chapter, as he is acting as he did during the war…mission mode, if you like. I hope I don't confuse too many people!

Tsuzuki and Heero walked quickly through the streets, heading for the mall where Quatre had planned to take Hisoka. Heero was pleasantly surprised to find that Tsuzuki traveled the way he did – in straight lines. Over fences, through alleyways and the ground floors of buildings, dodging the security with more skill than Heero. The ex-pilot hadn't had someone synchronize with him this well since Duo back in the war.

Heero felt a stab of loss shoot through him. He missed Duo. He missed the way he was so sleepy in the morning if he woke in a proper bed, and yet Heero knew that if they had been out of doors or woken by a sound from outside he would be awake in an instant. He missed his cheerful banter, and he missed his fiery kisses… Heero quickly shut down that train of thought and concentrated on hurdling a six foot wooden fence using some packing crates.

He hadn't been the only one to miss Duo's presence. Wufei had even grown out his hair in remembrance, although he would deny it fervently if it was mentioned.

They arrived at the entrance and screeched to a halt. Tsuzuki pulled Heero into an alcove by the main doors and looked at him seriously.

"Have you been here before? Are you familiar with the layout?"

"Iie."

"I'll get a floor plan from the main desk then. Contact base and see if they know where they were last. Follow me at a reasonable distance, be discreet."

"Ducai."

Tsuzuki nodded and headed into the glass and concrete edifice. After a quick glance around, Heero followed, pulling his mobile phone out of his pocket and calling Wufei. He kept an eye on Tsuzuki through the reflections in the store windows as he pretended to browse.

Tsuzuki sauntered unhurriedly to the large 'Information' sign. He pulled out his cheerful jester's mask from the war and revised his American accent in his head. He'd become used to speaking Japanese without an accent, it was strange to go back to speaking with one.

"Hey, ma'am, I was wondering if you could help me?"

"Yes?"

"I'm a little lost here, do you have a map of this place or somethin'?"

"We do. Would you like one?"

"Well, that's why I was askin'!" Duo exclaimed cheerfully.

The lady, who had curly brown hair tied back in a tight ponytail and looked extremely fed up, gave him a smile that was more like a pained grimace and handed him a glossy leaflet. The Shinigami thanked her politely and headed over to his partner, who was apparently engrossed in a necklace display.

"Any news from the others?"

"Café, from the sounds. Second floor."

Duo scanned the map and nodded. "Got it. Follow me."

They took the elevator up two floors and quickly made their way to the Starbucks. Duo queued for coffee while Heero secured a table, looking around all the while for suspects, suspicious behavior or anything that was out of place. Well, as out of place as anything could get in a mall filled with all sorts of different shops and people.

Duo used his American accent again on the coffee lady – consistency was everything, and Heero was too far away to hear and wonder. He bought Heero a double espresso, exactly the same as he always used to have, and got a cappuccino for himself.

The Japanese man stared at him in amazement – well, as much amazement as you could get on Heero's features – when the drink was placed in front of him.

"How did you know that I drink this? I didn't tell you."

Duo paused. Crap. He didn't want to lie… "Quatre told me," he said finally. It was true; he just didn't mention that Quatre had told him about eighty years ago back during the war. Heero nodded and took a sip, watching as Duo added six packets of sugar to his cappuccino.

"What?" Duo asked, when the gaze began to get a little unnerving.

Heero shook his head. "Sorry. It's just… Duo used to drink his coffee like that."

"Really? That's odd. You talk about him a lot, were you close?" Duo asked, trying desperately to keep his Tsuzuki mask in place.

"Very close."

Duo nodded. "He sounds like an ok guy."

"He was amazing."

"Do we know the direction that Quatre and Hisoka headed after the café?" Duo asked, changing the subject. "If we follow in their footsteps we could get jumped too, if maybe the assaulters assume that we're following them to meet up or something. Only we are prepared."

"Sounds like a plan."

Heero pulled out his cell phone again and called Wufei for the second time. After a quick conversation, during which Duo finished his coffee, Heero stood up.

"I know where they went. With me?"

"Woah, oh, all the way," Duo muttered as he stood and slid into his full length coat.

Heero led the way out of the café, trying to figure out why that phrase sounded so familiar to him. As they reached the service corridor where Hisoka and Quatre had last been traced, he pushed the thought aside and focused on the mission. He needed to concentrate; he couldn't mess up the mission because he was thinking of something else!

They walked past the entrance, but nothing happened. Once they were a little way away, Tsuzuki tapped Heero on the shoulder, frowning.

"Maybe they've gone now that they have Quatre and Hisoka. Lets go into spirit form and check it out." Spirit form is when they are invisible and can walk through walls and stuff. Pretty cool, ne?

"Hai."

The two Shinigami stepped behind a large potted palm and disappeared when no-one was looking.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

Meanwhile, in Muraki's lab, the two prisoners were getting very worried. The lights still hadn't come on, but some machines had started humming, and faint shapes could be made out in the faint green light a few of the screens gave off. It felt like something big was about to happen.  
Their instincts were proved right when the lights flickered on and the door swung open simultaneously.

"Well, my little pets, how are you doing?"

Quatre snarled at the silver-haired man while Hisoka shrank back against the wall.

"I think I shall start with the blond empath first….such spirit!" Muraki declared, smiling sinisterly. Quatre struggled against his manacles, but there was nothing he could do. For a moment, he wished he was Heero. The perfect soldier would have been able to snap the chains with ease.

Muraki advanced, a hypodermic needle in his hand. He injected the substance into Quatre's neck and the ex-pilot felt his muscles turn to jelly. He stared at Hisoka in horror. He couldn't even speak, let alone lift a hand. Hisoka's green eyes filled with tears.

Muraki unlocked the wrist and ankle cuffs, lifted him easily onto the examination table and restrained him again. An unnecessary gesture, Quatre thought, seeing as he could barely blink. Still, he could be on this table a while.

Muraki attached electrodes to his forehead and chest, placing one with care over his heart. Then he flicked a switch on the machine next to the bed, and Quatre felt a sharp stab of agony before everything went black.

Hisoka huddled as far away from Muraki as he could. Quatre had passed out, and he was glad that the blond didn't have to suffer much pain. The young empath fell back on his usual safeguard when he was distressed; he thought about Tsuzuki. The man had become a walking security blanket for Hisoka, and he didn't have a clue. Hisoka even managed a smile, thinking of his partner's delighted, over the top reaction would be if he told him.

Tsuzuki had been different since they had arrived in Sanq, however. He hadn't gone overboard on sweets, deserted any meetings in favor of apple pie or even joked much. Hisoka had never seen Tsuzuki serious for this long before. He had asked his partner about it that breakfast time, but the violet-eyed Shinigami hadn't been forthcoming. Hisoka had rationalized it to dislike of the country, but given what Quatre had just told him…

Was he suppressing his normal, jokey self ican 'ndows as he pobile phone out of his pocket and calling Quatre. He kept an eye on Tbecause that was how he had acted when he was Duo? Maybe it was a safeguard to keep his identity safe? But he had been a Gundam Pilot! Surely he hadn't been a joker then? The pilots had been terrorists; they couldn't have had time for practical jokes, could they?

Although, thinking about his partner, Hisoka wouldn't put it past him…

A moan from the table drew Hisoka's attention back to the present. He felt so helpless and useless! He'd never wanted his gun so much in his life. Muraki wasn't even looking at Quatre; the blond was writhing in pain on the table, his face paler than the electrodes attached to his skin. Meanwhile the sadistic scientist was fiddling with a large machine, looking at the printouts spewing out a slot at the side, frowning and then twisting knobs and pressing buttons. Every now and then a fresh burst of agony shot through the blond, making Hisoka wince.

He brushed the edge of Quatre's thoughts, almost without meaning to, trying to soothe away the pain. He wished that he had paid more attention to his gift, learned how to use it rather than being afraid of it and falling back on guns and fuda.

Quatre's head was filled with a name.

/Trowa Trooooooooooooowa TROWA! Trowaaaaaaaaa oh Trowa/

Hisoka sniffed and felt the tears spill from his eyes. He wished more than anything that Quatre's husband was on his way to take his little blond partner away.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Heero and Tsuzuki melted through the door into the small room and materialized on the other side. Heero immediately felt for his gun, and a glace to the side showed that his partner had crouched into a fighting stance. The stance seemed vaguely familiar – Heero shook his head at himself. Of course it did! He'd seen many, many fighters over the years, it made sense that he had seen this particular stance before!

They were in a dusty, deserted office. There were two monitors on a rickety desk and a waste paper basket, overflowing with _something_ – exactly what was in it was hidden by the thick layer of dust that coated _everything_. The monitors were light grey with the stuff.

To his left, Tsuzuki stiffened.

"Nan ka." Heero muttered, using the particle to make his question apparent rather than raising his voice.

"Muraki was here."

"ne?"

"Look at the filing cabinet."

Heero looked. Then he frowned. "A doll?"

"Hai. Muraki has a thing about them."

Heero detected a slight accent to his partner's words, but it was gone before he could identify it.

Tsuzuki approached the cabinet carefully, making sure not to touch the doll. It was new, and dressed in a fancy dress that reminded Heero of a peacock's tail. There was a small pair of gold-rimmed glasses with only one handle attached to it's tiny hand.

"Opera glasses," he told Tsuzuki. He was familiar with them thanks to the many trips to the Opera that he had had to accompany Relena on. Once he had made it clear that he was not interested in her romantically, she had still insisted on becoming his friend. He had given her away at her wedding, he remembered. Tsuzuki stepping away from the cabinet snapped him from his thoughts. Why was he so easily distracted today? True, he had remained focused on watching the room while he was thinking, but being able to multi-task was no excuse. He had to keep a tighter reign over his thoughts, or he could inadvertently put Quatre and Hisoka in danger!

Tsuzuki nodded at him and dematerialized again. They took the quick way back to base – rising up through the support struts of the mall and then surfing the wind to the helicopter pad on top of Sanq's JuChoOh.

As soon as they got back into the building, Tsuzuki made a beeline for his laptop. He seated himself cross-legged on a sofa and sat there, frowning intently at the screen as he tapped busily on the keyboard.

Heero shook his head and went for coffee. When he returned, two steaming cardboard containers of coffee in his hands, Tsuzuki still hadn't moved. He had a cute frown mark between his eyebrows- Heero froze. Had he really just thought that?

Well, Tsuzuki _was_ sitting exactly as Duo used to, he reasoned. A small smile crossed his normally stoic features as he remembered one incident. Duo had liked to listen to apparently endless lists of music tracks as he worked, occasionally singing along. One time, they had been on a plane flying to visit Quatre in Arabia. Heero had wondered why Duo was typing, they were supposed to be on _vacation_ – this had been just before Duo had disappeared. Then, Duo had mysteriously shouted "Why is it always those damn scribal schools that inexplicably burn down? I swear that's the third time!"

"Do you even know what 'inexplicable' means?" Heero had asked after a moment of speechlessness.

Duo had huffed and pouted cutely. "Yeah, I do. G did teach me some stuff, ya know!"

A few weeks later Duo had mysteriously vanished. Heero still had his partner's old laptop, he'd even kept it thorough becoming a Shinigami. It was in an apparently innocent cardboard box. Well, it was in a triple locked safe, wrapped with steel chains hidden inside an apparently innocent, ratty cardboard box that happened to be gundanium plated. Being a wanted pilot had never really worn off. The building could fall on their heads and that laptop wouldn't even be scratched. Although it already was from Duo dragging it everywhere. So…it wouldn't get another scratch.

"…are you ok?"

"Huh?"

Tsuzuki was staring at him, concern shining in his large purple eyes. "You've been staring at nothing for quite a while."

"Oh, I was just thinking."

Tsuzuki carefully took one of the coffee containers from his hand and sipped at it. His fingers were warm, Heero noted absently.

"What about, if I can ask?"

"It's ok. I was remembering my partner."

A strange look came into those bright eyes, and their sparkle faded a little. "Duo right?" Tsuzuki asked casually.

"Yeah. You reminded him of me just then, the way you were concentrating on the screen."

Tsuzuki stiffened a little, and then relaxed. The movement probably wouldn't have been noticeable to anyone else, but Heero had been trained as an assassin. Tsuzuki appeared to be hiding something. Maybe he had been killed by one of the pilots? He seemed uncomfortable whenever Duo was mentioned.

"I've contacted Tatsumi back home. That means that Konoe and the Count-" here Tsuzuki shuddered again but didn't try to hide it "-will know in approximately ten minutes."

"You know your colleagues well."

"Seventy years does that to you."

Heero gave into his curiosity. "What's wrong with the Count?"

Tsuzuki shuddered again. "He likes me," he mumbled, turning red.

"Nani?"

"He keeps on… stroking my cheek, coming on to me."

"Well… that doesn't sound too bad."

Tsuzuki gave him an incredulous look. "Have you _met_ the Count!"

"No, is he ugly?"

"He's invisible! He's a pair of white gloves and about half of Trowa's clown mask! Do you have any idea what it's like to be chatted up by someone who may as well be a ghost?"

"Uh, iie."

"Exactly my point," Tsuzuki concluded with an offended huff, sticking his nose in the air. "Besides, he likes drinking tea and his servants are weird little goblin _things_."

"What's wrong with tea?" Heero dared to ask. He decided not to comment on the goblins.

"It's not coffee," Tsuzuki stated with an air of great offence. "Tatsumi keeps on trying to get me to drink it too. I admit that the sakura blossoms look pretty when they float in it, but I hate the drink. Reminds me too much of Wufei's green tea, and that was just painful after-"

Tsuzuki immediately snapped his mouth shut, and picked up his laptop. "I have to go," he muttered as he headed out the door.

"Tsuzuki, matte! Chotto matte!" Heero called after him. But it was too late; the Shinigami had already disappeared.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Trowa sat tucked up on the bed that he was sharing with his gentle husband. He could _hear_ Quatre calling for him, but he had no idea where his little love was. The ex-pilot gripped his hear with his hands. Quatre was in pain, his voice told him that, and there was nothing he could do to help. His angel needed him, dammit!

Suddenly, the tall Shinigami uncoiled from the bed and prowled to the door like one of his circus lions from the old days. He stormed his way over to Heero's office, and curtly demanded an update on the situation. Once he knew what had been found at the shopping mall, he took over Heero's computer and started searching for clues, for anything that would help bring Quatre back to him.

He could still hear the blond repeating his name, screaming his name, over and over in the back of his head…

TBC


	7. On the Other Side of the Wall

Tsuzuki opened his eyes and shook off sleep in an instant. Hisoka had been missing for over 24 hours now. Who knew what Muraki was doing now that he had the young empath in his hands again? Duo was less worried for Quatre – after all the petite blond was a Gundam pilot, a warrior. Hisoka had been an ordinary, somewhat abused, civilian before becoming a Shinigami, and a sheltered one at that, what with his parents locking him up and then the enforced hospital stay thanks to Muraki's curse.

Although Tsuzuki didn't know that much about his partner's life, Hisoka understandably did not enjoy reminiscing, he knew enough to know that the boy would not be reacting well to being captured. Hopefully Quatre's presence would prevent him from slipping into suicidal depression, providing that they were being held together.

The violet eyed Shinigami grimaced as he stepped under the shower spray, cursing the fact that the two empaths of the party, the only two who had a _hope_ of communicating without the help of normal, technological, means just had to be the ones captured!

He tugged at his hair in annoyance and then fought back the tears that threatened to break loose thanks to his exhaustion. Dammit, he thought that he had dealt with the loss of his braid!

Duo sank to the floor of the shower and bowed his head under the water, closing his eyes. It was too much… they had spent a large chunk of the night – until 4am – trying to find any clue of Muraki's presence, and it was now 7am. Three hours sleep. He could survive on three hours, he had before. Hell, he had before he became a pilot! Living on the streets did not make for safe, dreamless nights. Piloting a Gundam didn't either, and the nightmares made for disturbed rest even when it was relatively safe.

He bared his teeth in a silent snarl. Why was he thinking so much about the past? He had managed to put it behind him in Japan! Why was his carefully constructed façade falling now? Was it being in Sanq? Seeing the other pilots again? Being with Heero again?

A shudder wracked his body. Heero. As soon as he had seen those blue eyes again, all he had wanted to do was fall into them. Fall into his arms, tell him the truth. He should have known that they would be here; the job was so _them_. Absently Duo wondered what Heero had done after his death. If he hadn't married Relena… an image of the wedding photo with Wufei holding the violet ribbon bedecked scythe floated into his mind and he was able to laugh and throw off his black mood.

He shut off the water and dressed quickly. Coffee. Everything would look brighter once he had a good dose of caffeine inside him.

He found the others in Heero's office, all looking sleepy. As soon as he was in the room, Merian pounced on him.

"Tsuzuki! Look, these idiots do not agree with me that the doll is significant. Tell them!"

Tsuzuki blinked in confusion. "The doll? Ooh… actually, that is kinda odd."

Three heads immediately snapped in his direction. Duo laughed nervously, holding up a hand.

"What do you mean?" Trowa snapped, his green eyes intense.

"Muraki has this thing for dolls. He really likes them for some reason. Him leaving one is odd – there were others ways for him to make up aware of his presence. The doll is a clue. Heero, what did you say it was holding again? I was too busy checking that it wasn't a bomb."

"Opera glasses."

"Opera glasses?" Wufei asked curiously. "How the hell did you know what they were?"

"Relena used to drag me to them."

"Ah."

"Is there an Opera house in the capital?"

"Of course there is. It has shows regularly."

"Ok, lets go check it out."

The opera house was… big. Much bigger that the concert hall where they had used Hijiri as bait to call out Saagatanasu. Of course, that had backfired slightly when Tsuzuki had been possessed by the damn demon… thank God for Konoe's love of sweet things and Hisoka's perceptiveness. Tsuzuki shook off the grim thoughts and focused on the fancy scrollwork and gold gilt. Jeez, the place was opulent. Quatre would have been at home there. It had been a long running joke that Sandrock was the only Gundam with velvet seat cushions and drink holders.

Still, after getting permission to roam backstage – he had a feeling that Heero's death glare had played a large part in acquiring that permission – they couldn't find any evidence of Muraki. The man was striking enough to be remembered, but no-one had seen him. And Muraki was the kind that liked to be seen, especially if he was trying to draw someone out.

They headed back to the skyscraper tired and discouraged. But as they walked, Merian, who was in front, stopped dead, staring at a large building on the left. As she was in front, the whole group had to stop.

"What is it?" Wufei grumbled.

"Ni shi sha gua," she said absently, crossing the road.

"Onna!" Wufei screeched, dashing after her while reaching instinctively for the sword he was not wearing. The rest of the group watched them dodge the traffic for a minute, shrugged, then followed.

"Dunno why he's so upset, she only called him a fool," Duo muttered absently. Heero gave him a sharp look, but the commotion caused by the arguing Chinese couple distracted him.

It turned out that Merian had been perceptive enough to notice the large, converted opera house. According to the signs on the front it was now a museum. Wufei had been more worried about the fact that his beloved wife had crossed the road without looking. Duo found that slightly hard to believe, but he supposed that she had died on him before, after all.

Most of the argument had been over the fact that she was already dead, so looking before crossing roads was a little pointless. Wufei apparently saw a point.

Heero pulled out a mobile and auto-dialed a number. "Trowa? Merian just thought of something interesting… yeah. Are there any _old_ opera houses in the city? Other than the one that has been converted into a museum. We already found that one. Ok. Hai. Ja ne."

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Heero sighed as he opened the door to his room. He was so tired! They had spent the afternoon researching all the opera houses within a 20 mile radius. There were a surprising amount – six in all. Two were already accounted for. One had been destroyed in a fire. One was now a movie theatre. And the last two were reputedly deserted. They would both be checked out early tomorrow morning.

The group had stayed up all night researching, and Heero was feeling the effects. Tsuzuki had had a nap for a few hours that morning, he knew, and he wished that he had had the foresight to do the same.

The blue-eyed Japanese man flopped onto his bed and sleepily curled around his pillow. He idly wondered where that habit had come from… then he stiffened as he remembered. Duo. Once his love had disappeared, he hadn't been able to sleep without curling around his abandoned pillow and breathing in the lingering scent of Duo's hair. Once the smell had faded, the pillow itself became his comfort. It still had the same pillowcase on it, a black cotton one that was soft and nubby with age.

Heero closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow they would find the missing members of their team and get Muraki once and for all!

He woke with a start, the sheets twisted around his waist and legs. It was hot, too hot, and all he could remember from his dream was a pair of violet eyes, shadowed by chestnut bangs, and a rough, calloused, slightly tanned but still very pale hand teasing him.

Duo.

He was hard and he didn't think that a cold shower would quell this desire. Almost unconsciously he wriggled, and found that the sheets rubbed delightfully around his arousal when he moved _just_ so. An unconscious moan spilled from his lips.

In the room next door, Tsuzuki froze, stabbed to the soul by a sound he hadn't heard in so long… he dropped the shirt he was holding and took a step closer to the wall.

Heero was panting now, his mind's eye filled with pictures of Duo. But in some his hair was shorter… Heero frowned but didn't stop, he was too far gone.

With a growl of frustration he tore the sheets off of his body, almost ripping them in his haste, and wrapped a hand around his erection, unable to stop his hips from bucking up as he took himself in hand. Oh God, that was what he needed. It had been far too long…

"Duo…" he moaned.

On the other side of the wall, Tsuzuki stiffened and blinked, tears starting into his eyes. After all this time… Heero still thought of him? Oh God…

Duo dropped to his knees, the sounds of Heero pleasuring himself filtering through the wall and into his ear. He was hardening himself just listening. And, tentatively, he slid a hand down and rubbed himself through the open fly of his jeans.

"Fuck!" he hissed as an extra loud moan sounded in the other room.

Pre-cum wasn't lubing his hand as much as he would like but Heero lacked the patience and the mental capacity to go and get something to help. He licked his palm instead and used that.

It had been so long, but he wanted to draw it out a little. Almost whimpering in frustration he slowed down slightly, not wanting to in the slightest but knowing that he would thank himself later. There was a slight noise from the wall above his head, but his blood was hissing in his ears and the rasp of his elbow against the sheets drowned out all other noises.

Duo pressed his hand flat against the wall and fumbled with the fastening on his jeans. The last few buttons on his black shirt were already undone. He felt guilty, but the knowledge that Heero was doing _that_ less than a meter away just made him wish that there was a peephole or something. It had been so long…

Unable to take it much longer, Heero focused on the mental snapshot of Duo wearing leather pants and pouting, squeezed a little and let go of his control, spilling all over his hand. He lay panting for a moment, then lazily reached for the tissues on the bedside table.

Heero couldn't figure out why Tsuzuki had blushed the moment he had seen him that morning. The violet eyed Shinigami was a mystery. So many things about him seemed familiar, and yet Heero was sure that they had never met before.

He took a few minutes out of his opera house search to look up the little phrase Tsuzuki had said in the mall, the one that had sounded so familiar – Woah, all the way. Unfortunately, a lot of songs had those words in them. One band caught his eye – the Rolling Stones. He vaguely remembered someone mentioning them once. On a whim, Heero added 'rock' to the search parameter.

Nothing that looked vaguely familiar came up. Heero was sure that it was a song, though. He cut out the 'woah' and added 'classic'. The search now read classic rock "all the way" lyrics but still nothing recognizable was coming up on the first page. He tried to remember anything else about the song… something about flying? Being high? Taking away 'classic' and adding in either of the two words and still he recognized nothing and was beginning to get frustrated. He abandoned the search and began to search for a site that could identify lyrics.

The first few sites he looked in still came up with nothing. But Heero was intrigued now and determined to figure out where that phrase had come from and why it had sounded so familiar. He felt vaguely guilty for not spending this time searching for more information about the opera houses, but they weren't leaving for a bit.

Just then, Tsuzuki wandered past the open door to his office. "Ne, Tsuzuki!" Heero called, curiosity getting the better of him.

The other man jumped, blushed, then turned to face him, apparently unwilling to meet his eyes. "Uh, hai?"

"You said something at the mall – woah, all the way. What is that from?"

"Uh, High Enough. It's a song."

"Arigato."

"Um, well, if that's all I'll just be going, uh, yeah. Bye." Tsuzuki backed out of the office, still babbling and blushing. Heero shrugged off the strangeness and searched for "High Enough" The third site down caught his eye. There were many artists who had written songs with the words 'High Enough' in them, but "Damn Yankees" struck a chord in his memory.

The song sounded vaguely familiar, and Heero decided to download the MP3 on the spot. Once he knew the artist and title it was a matter of five minutes of work.

Soft strings filled the air of his office and he leaned back in his chair as the soft voice of the singer echoed through the still air, accompanied by the soft sound of an acoustic guitar.

He remembered where he had heard it before. He had admitted some of his feelings to Duo one night. Duo, for once, hadn't known what to say, and the violet-eyed pilot had bolted into the gardens of Quatre's mansion.

He had found him in the rose garden, sitting on a marble bench with tears running down his face. After a few minutes of watching from the shadows, he was about to step forward, when softly sand shakily Duo had begun to sing.

The Japanese teen had had no idea that the American could sing, let alone sing well.

As he remembered, sitting at his computer, Heero felt tears begin to run down his cheeks as they had had that night.

ooooooooooooooooooo

Quietly, Duo slipped to the floor of the corridor and rested his head on his knees as his own tears spilled from his eyes. He was unable to prevent a few silent sobs from shaking his slender frame. The song resonated through the air and he now remembered clearly why Heero had wanted to know and why telling him had been a bad idea.

Soft footsteps warned him of someone's approach, but he was too miserable to care. He needed to tell Heero that he wasn't dead – he could hear soft sobs coming from inside the office over the music.

"Tsuzuki, daijoubu ka?"

"Iie…" he groaned, looking up into Merian's concerned face.

"What's wrong?"

"I…this song… I sang it back in the war."

"Nani?" Merian questioned. "Tsuzuki, something strange is going on and I want you to tell me what it is. I'm not stupid, I've seen how you have your own version of 'mission mode' and how you fit in with the others and how you avoid any mention of the second pilot. What is it? Were you killed by the pilots in the war?"

Duo took a long look at her face and decided to trust her. "Promise not to tell?"

"Hai."

"Tsuzuki Asato is not my given name. I do not know my given name. But the name I gave myself was Duo Maxwell."

TBC

I think I'm gonna leave it there….mwaha. Chapter a little shorter than normal, sorry, but it was such a great place to leave it!

Ni shi sha gua – You are a fool, Mandarin. (According to insultmonger . com anyhow)

Lyrics for High Enough (in case you are wondering):

I don't want to hear about it anymore,  
It's a shame I've got to live without you anymore.  
There's a fire in my heart,  
A pounding in my brain, it's driving me crazy.

We don't need to talk about it anymore.  
Yesterday's just a memory; can we close the door?  
I just made one mistake,  
I didn't know what to say when you called me baby.

Don't say goodnight,  
Say you're gonna stay forever,  
Oh, whoa, all the way.

Can you take me high enough  
to fly me over yesterday?  
Can you take me high enough?  
It's never over and yesterday's just a memory,  
Yesterday's just a memory.

And I don't want to live without you anymore.  
Can't you see I'm in misery?  
And you know for sure  
I would live and die for you  
And I'd know just what to do when you call me baby.

Bridge & Chorus

I was running (woah)  
I was running for the door  
The next thing I remember (woah)  
I was running back for more  
Ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Repeat Bridge & Chorus.


	8. Trip to the Past

Less common words are translated. For words like hai and iie, well, if you're anime fans you should know those already!

x

Hisoka shivered against the wall, the cold from the floor seeping through his clothes. The manacles were chafing at his skin, but he was grateful that Muraki hadn't actually done anything to him – yet.

Quatre was still unconscious on the table, and their tormentor had left almost an hour ago. At least the lights were on; the young Shinigami doubted that he could take it if he was left alone in the dark.

Just then, Quatre shifted, making Hisoka start in surprise, jangling his chains. The blond moaned, tried to raise and hand to his head, and grunted in resignation when he found that he was restrained to the table.

"Status?" he croaked hoarsely.

Hisoka didn't know what he meant for a minute, but then he remembered the military background of his fellow prisoner.

"Daijoubu. He didn't do anything to me. Are you ok?"

Quatre rolled his head to the side, cracked his eyes open and gave Hisoka a small smile. "I'll live," he whispered. "I've had worse."

"What…" Hisoka licked suddenly dry lips. "What did he do to you?"

Quatre shook his head slightly. "Shirimasen. Something that hurt. Is there anything to drink?"

"Iie," Hisoka said regretfully. Quatre nodded slightly.

"Gonna go sleep again now," he muttered, closing his eyes again.

Hisoka felt an irrational stab of fear run through him, but managed to suppress it before it got to the stage where it would bother the blond Arabian's empathic gift. Quatre looked terrible, but at least he was coherent and rational. Hisoka was willing to bet that he didn't look too great himself now. His stomach growled and threatened to send hunger pains stabbing through him.

Where was Tsuzuki? Surely his partner was coming to get him?

oooooooooooooooooooooo

Trowa waited impatiently in the hallway for the others to assemble. They needed to get going and find Quatre! Who knew what his angel was going through? The sobbing of his name had stopped, and he hoped that it was because Quatre had fallen asleep, rather than because Quatre was – no, he wasn't even going to _think_ that. Quatre would be fine. He had to be.

Finally everyone was there, checking surveillance equipment and going over the codes for backup, mission abort and the signal that they had found the missing pair with Merian, who was going to stay in JuMoCho and act as a coordinator and their link with the rest of the building.

Trowa hadn't seen very many other operatives in the building during his stay, most of those he had were relaxing in the canteen or coffee lounge. The Sanq branch seemed like a very busy place for a country devoted to Pacifism.

"Ready, Barton?" Wufei asked, coming up beside him. "I know you fear for your husband, but you must put those feelings aside now. We need to find the base first of all."

"I know, Chang."

"I will partner you, Tsuzuki and Yuy are going together."

"Ok. Ready?"

"Ready. Lets go."

The two teams dashed out the main doors, took a running jump into the air and sped off in different directions, heading for the two abandoned Opera houses where they were sure that they would find Muraki and his two unfortunate captives.

oooooooooooooooo

Duo tip-toed down the dusty hall after his partner, feeling the ancient carpet disintegrate under his boots. Ew.

The… incident… earlier had confirmed one thing for the violet-eyed Shinigami; Heero still liked him. He hadn't moved on – unless that had been a random event, something that Duo doubted. That sort of thing wasn't in Heero's nature. And he still loved the ex-pilot. So all that was stopping him was the last seventy years of his life and the painful memories.

He couldn't just tell Heero now… he would probably hate him for the deception. Or rather, omission, seeing as he was Tsuzuki Asato now, to all intents and purposes. He was a damn good Shinigami, if a lazy one, and partnered Kurosaki Hisoka. Duo Maxwell was in the past.till loved the ex-pilot. So all that was stopping him was the last seventy years of his life

Heero held up a hand for silence, and signaled Tsuzuki to come up beside him using the gestures they had worked out while storming space stations back in the Eve war. He then seemed to realise what he had done, and turned back to whisper to Tsuzuki, only to find the other Shinigami beside him, grinning slightly.

Duo looked at Heero's confused face and fought the urge to giggle.

'How did you-?' the Japanese Shinigami mouthed.

'It doesn't matter,' Tsuzuki replied soundlessly. 'What did you see?'

Heero shook his head and then pointed to the passage in front of them. There were several tracks of footprints leading through the dust. Tsuzuki caught Heero's eye, nodded, and then set off along the corridor, carefully treading in the footprints of whoever it was who had walked there before.

Behind him, he sensed that Heero paused before following. They ghosted along the corridor, the only sounds the slight brush of cloth against cloth and the muffled thuds of their footsteps, neither loud enough to be heard by anyone further than five meters away.(1)

The footsteps led them down three flights of stairs - apparently the Opera House had cellars. The level they ended up on was very different from the previous two. For a start, it was clean. Someone had taken the time to paint the walls and lay carpet - luckily it was thick enough to continue to cover their footsteps. There was even an elegant end table with a potted fern on it.

Just then a tortured scream echoed through the corridor.

Tsuzuki twisted around and met Heero's deep blue eyes. Duo allowed himself to get lost in them for a scant moment, and then Tsuzuki nodded, and tapped at his earpiece. It was time to call base; it looked like they had found them.

oooooooooooooooooo

Wufei looked up at the ruins of the abandoned Opera house he and Trowa had decided to search. It had once been magnificent, with a dome and minarets. There were cracked remains of gargoyles clinging to the eaves and marble columns lining the walk to the main entrance.

Wild rose, ivy and a clematis with purple flowers had run rampant over the building, adding to the destruction and air of forgotten magnificence.

Trowa was currently scaling the building with the aid of the creepers; the plants had effectively closed off the main doors, but there was a window on the third floor that had been smashed in at some point, leaving a wide enough gap for Trowa to slide his slim frame through. If he thought it was safe, Wufei would follow him up.

"Clear," Trowa called down, poking his head out of the window. "Need help?"

Wufei shook his head, not wanting to risk anyone hearing his call. He rubbed his hands together and reckoned the best route to scale the building. He decided that he could follow one of the main stems of ivy up to the second floor, traverse along the ledge that ran around the building till he was to the left of the window, and then follow a diagonal rose vine which passed just over the opening, using it to swing in. Route decided, he walked to the wall and began to climb.

He winced as he landed in a crouch on the floor of the room. He had forgotten that Roses had thorns, and his fingers had suffered for his negligence.

The two ex-pilots quickly searched the building, but found traces of nothing but animals and signs of homeless people habiting the building at different points. All the traces of humans were old though - they probably stopped around about when the roof fell in, Wufei guessed.

The Chinese Shinigami was worried about his partner. Trowa was tense and fully in 'Mercenary' mode. He was obviously worried about his husband and Wufei was apprehensive; he didn't want his partner to go off and do something reckless. Trowa had longer legs and could run much faster than he could.

Just then there was a message from Merian. The two men tensed and listened intently.

"They've found something suspicious in the other opera house. If you haven't found anything, make your way there to back them up."

"Ryoukai," Trowa muttered.

"Shr, hen gan shie," Wufei told his wife.

"Bu yung shie." (translation at end)

oooooooooooooooooooo

Hisoka choked back a moan of dismay when Muraki strode into their prison and started fiddling with the machines by Quatre's bed again. He completely ignored the shackled Shinigami. Hisoka wasn't sure whether to feel insulted, relieved or guilty that he couldn't take some of the pain for the blond who had tried to be his friend.

Muraki checked the restraints and then tapped a button. Quatre started awake with a strangled scream.

"Ittai!" he shook his head and glared up at Muraki. "Who are you? What do you want with me? I won't tell you anything!" he growled.

Hisoka blinked in surprise. What was going on?

"My dear young man, whatever makes you think that I want information?" Muraki drawled.

"You bastards always want _something_. Have you captured any of the others? Which faction are you with, anyways? I think I have a right to know who captured me. Oz? Romefellar? Alliance? White Fang? Who are you working for, you bastard?"

Hisoka groaned. Quatre had obviously completely lost track of what was going on. Weren't those groups people who had been in that war eighty years ago? Whatever Muraki had done must have sent Quatre back in his memories.

"Well, young man, I am not with any of those groups. I am a scientist."

It was apparently the wrong thing to say. "Which one do you work for?" Quatre hissed. "J? G? O? H? S? I know you are not one of our mentors. It's J, isn't it? I won't let you condition me the way he conditioned 01! And I will never tell you where my Gundam is!"

Quatre was wild eyed and seemed not to have a complete handle on the conversation. He was skipping from topic to topic, sometimes insisting that he wouldn't tell Muraki anything and at others convinced that this 'J' was going to perform some kind of experiment on him. Hisoka listened to his argument with Muraki with a heavy heart. Muraki seemed very pleased, judging by his smirk at the comments that were obviously intended to incite Quatre further.

"01 and 02 will come for me, you know," Quatre threatened, straining in his restraints. "03 will break into your base and 05 will turn it into flames. You do not mess with one of the Gundam pilots!" as distressed as he was the blond did not notice the syringe full of clear liquid that Muraki injected into his arm. "01 will take his gun and shoot you, 02 will torture you slowly before he allows you to die. 05 will gripe about Justice and slowly slice you apart with his katana. 03 will...will..."

Quatre slumped to the table in a dead faint.

Muraki turned on the machines surrounding the bed, causing Quatre to scream in agony. "Let's see if I can get him back to the present, shall we?" he said, apparently to himself, for he didn't look at Hisoka. The young empath tugged at his manacles in vain, and did his best to block the waves of pain emanating from the blond.

Muraki turned to Hisoka with a feral smile. "Well, that was entertaining, was it not? I did not think that the Gundam pilots were like that, they were only 15 after all, and Quatre Raberba Winner was reputedly the most gentle of the five. I would hate to think what would happen if I were able to bring 02 back. Apparently he was on the streets for a time, he must have quite the vocabulary."

"Damn right I do, motherfucker."

x

Gomen for the cliffie... reviews onegai? (puppy dog eyes)

Japanese:

Shirimasen – I don't know.

Ryouaki - accepted or acknowledged

Mandarin:

Shir, hen gan shie - yes, thank you very much

Bu yung shie - you're welcome

(1) - pet hate of mine is people walking silently in fics. It CANNOT be done, believe me, I've tried. Walking Heel to Toe, walking Toe to Heel, moving excruciatingly slowly, wearing skintight clothes (heh, yeah, as if I would...I'm a huge fan of baggyness and comfort) you ALWAYS make some noise. I can generally walk quietly enough so that cars passing or a rushing wind would cover my footsteps, and someone wouldn't hear if I was a short distance away, but it is impossible to walk completly silently. Especially when wearing baggy trousers. And Tsuzuki wears a full length trenchcoat for heavens sake. Those things _flap_ in the wind. Uh, yeah. So there.


	9. Rescued

Dark Devotions - oh, not offended; I can't speak a word of mandarin. That's just what the website I lifted the phrases off of said.

If anyone does see any problems with the translations, please point them out, and if they are garishly obvious (as in, they will bug me if they are not changed) I will fix the problem. V

Loving all the feedback, guys! Thanks a million!

x

Heero came in to the room right behind Tsuzuki, his dark blue eyes taking in the scene. He had been too far away to hear whatever Muraki had said to Hisoka, but he heard Tsuzuki's reply.

"Damn right I do, motherfucker."

Heero decided not to wonder what Muraki had said... the two men did know each other after all. He was more interested in the table that Quatre was strapped to. The blond was twitching and moaning, covered in electrodes and surrounded by humming machinery. The blond was not fully conscious, which was probably a good thing. Hisoka was chained to the nearby wall, in a position that was not too uncomfortable, even if it did restrict his movements.

Muraki had been standing over Hisoka, but he had turned at Tsuzuki's voice. He smiled. That smile was one of the freakiest things Heero had ever seen. It was on par with Quatre's Zero laugh. The blue-eyed Shinigami shuddered, and unconsciously lapsed into a fighting stance, reaching for the gun that was in the back of his waistband.

"Why, Tsuzuki-san, fancy seeing you here."

"What are you doing to them, Muraki?" Tsuzuki hissed.

"Hm? My pretty doll and this exquisite ex-pilot? Nothing permanent."

Hisoka moaned and reached out a hand to Tsuzuki. Heero stepped up to the other man and breathed in his ear;

"Distract him, I'll see what I can do."

Tsuzuki nodded, and stepped closer to Muraki. "Do I have to call my Shikigami to make my point or will you let them go easily? Either way, _this_ little experiment is _over_!"

"Tsuzuki-san, Tsuzuki-san. I'm not hurting the little blond... much. And don't touch those machines!" he suddenly snapped, spinning around and pinning Heero with a silver stare. "I took his mind back into the past. Talking with a Gundam pilot was intriguing... if you can call it talking. Turn off those machines and you will leave him brain dead."

Heero shot Tsuzuki a despairing look. The violet eyed Shinigami shook his head.

"However...that will not stop me!" Muraki cackled, black whips of ethereal energy beginning to twist around him. Tsuzuki quickly got into a casting stance and started to mutter. Heero watched closely, lip reading. He had never seen anything like this before...

"I call to you and beseech you, the 12 gods that protect me..."

A loud crash from Muraki's side of the lab tore Heero's attention away. Muraki was now flanked by three shadowhounds, their teeth glinting in the harsh sterile light.

"SUZAKU!" Tsuzuki shouted, and Heero instinctively ducked as licking tendrils of flame scorched through the air.

The battle that followed was fast and furious, and Heero spent most of the first few minutes staring at the fiery phoenix-like God that had appeared in the middle of the lab. It had one wing curved protectively around Tsuzuki, until the violet-eyed Shinigami had set up a shield. He set another up around Quatre and Heero, while Hisoka managed to create one for himself.

A moan from the bed turned Heero's attention away from the raging battle, and he was able to mostly ignore the flashes of light as Muraki and Tsuzuki sent fuda darts at each other while their summonings waged war.

Quatre's eyes had opened, and he blinked up at Heero. "Heero? What are you doing here?"

"What year is it?"

"Huh?"

"Muraki said something about sending your mind back into the past."

Quatre looked confused, but told Heero the correct year. With a sigh of relief, Heero set to ripping all of the electrodes off of Quatre's pale skin.

"You need to eat," he told the blond absently. "Hisoka too, I suspect."

"We can eat when we get out of here!" Hisoka cried from the other side of the table. "Could you please get me out of these?"

"Are they gundanium?" Heero asked as he helped Quatre sit up. The blond swayed alarmingly.

"Of course not. That would be overkill."

"Not for me. Let me in your shield and I'll break the chains."

Hisoka closed his eyes and gestured with his free hand. The shield shimmered slightly, then melded with the one Tsuzuki had thrown over the other two ex-pilots. Hisoka's bright green eyes opened with a look of terrible pain and strain in them. Heero was impressed – from what he knew about magic, melding like that needed incredible trust between the partners and was very difficult and exhausting.

"Ok," he choked. "Go for it."

Heero dashed over to him and wasted no time in bending the steel chains so that Hisoka was left with a shackle on his wrist and another around his ankle.

"Wouldn't it be easier to just tear them out of the wall?" he asked.

"Then you would clank. Very bad for stealthy getaways."

Hisoka blinked at him, but then nodded. "I keep on forgetting that you're all terrorist soldiers," he commented. "You see so normal."

"None of us are _normal_," Quatre said, risking getting onto his feet. He swayed a little, but managed to stay upright. "Ok, Hisoka, we need to get out of here and let Heero help Tsuzuki. I think I'm the more disorientated, can you help me?"

"Wakatta."

Heero saw the pair safely to the door, guarding them from the flames licking around the lab. The flames wouldn't really injure them – Heero was sure that Tsuzuki's Shinigami wouldn't actually hurt them – but in their weakened state, he didn't want to take any chances. Once he had seen them safely into the corridor, he told them the way out and dived back into the lab to help his partner.

oooooooooooooooooooooooo

Wufei and Trowa burst through the main doors of the opera house at a full out run. They quickly found the stairs and hammered down them. Three flights later, Trowa, who was in the lead, ran smack into Quatre and Hisoka, almost knocking them over. Luckily Wufei saw and managed to stop in time, otherwise all four would have found themselves on the floor.

"Quatre!" Trowa gasped breathlessly, burying his husband in a tight hug.

Wufei looked around, and focused on Hisoka. "Where are Heero and Tsuzuki?"

"Fighting Muraki in the lab. Last door on the left. Hurry. I'll sort things out here."

"Don't separate them."

Hisoka gave him a withering look. "What do you think I am, stupid? Go help Tsuzuki and Heero, you baka."

Wufei didn't even spare the time to reply as he practically flew down the corridor, drawing his sword on the way.

The lab was filled with flames. Heero had a gun on a horrible drooling beast with long fangs and wings like a bat. Tsuzuki was battling with Muraki while a phoenix – Suzaku, Wufei recognized – fought against three other beasts.

Wufei quickly got into a summoning stance and began to mutter the summoning incantation. Once it was complete, he tilted his head to look at the ceiling and called loudly:

"NATAKU!"

The long, sinuous form of the legendary Dragon erupted into the room, green scales glinting in the light of the flames. Suzaku screeched a greeting, and Tsuzuki whipped his head around.

"Wufei! 'Bout time!" he called, turning back to Muraki and tossing a strip of paper covered in kanji towards the evil doctor. Wufei watched with interest as the man was tossed back into the wall behind him, leaving a sizeable crater.

It did not take long, with the extra backup, for the beasts to dissolve back into smoke. The three Shinigami cornered Muraki against a wall.

"Muraki. We should kill you now."

"Ah, but my dear Tsuzuki-san, you wouldn't do that. You hate killing."

"That won't stop me."

"You will merely kill yourself out of guilt."

Tsuzuki tensed up, his eyes blazing dark purple. "I have killed before, even if I regret it," he hissed. "My life has been filled with death and I have always been Shinigami. And I will never hesitate to kill fucking scum like you."

"Ah, but you yourself are equally guilty. You have tortured. I heard what you said when you entered."

"That may be so, but I am making up for it now. And it was necessary. There is peace now, no-one has to kill or maim or torture, yet you do it. There is no forgiveness for you. You will be judged," Tsuzuki said, his voice like ice. The words had the feel of ritual around them, and Muraki's form was surrounded by white smoke. Wufei watched as Tsuzuki crossed his wrists over his chest, holding a fuda strip between thumb and forefinger on each hand.

"Muraki Kazutaka, go to be judged."

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Hisoka stared at the two embracing men in mild shock. He couldn't remember the last time he had seen such a blatant display of affection. Trowa was curled around his smaller husband protectively, but he was the one crying into soft blond hair, while Quatre soothingly rubbed his back, whispering something into his ear in a language that Hisoka didn't understand.

_ "È giusto, amore, io sono benissimo, esso è giusto, esso è giusto, io sono qui, io sono sicuro..."_

Hisoka didn't really want to break them up, but the sound of something smashing from inside the lab, followed by an angry scream gave him the incentive to tap the pair on the shoulder.

"We should move out," he said quietly.

Trowa nodded, and pulled away slightly, leaving a supporting arm around Quatre's waist. Slowly the trio climbed the stairs and settled themselves in some old chairs in the foyer. Quatre and Hisoka were exhausted by the climb.

The two empaths were desperately thirsty, but there was no way for them to get a drink. Trowa offered to quickly go and get them something, and after a quick discussion they decided that that was the best plan.  
They wouldn't be able to travel under their own power otherwise.

Once Trowa had gone, Quatre turned to the young Shinigami with a warm smile. "We're out! See, I told you that they would rescue us."

"Are you sure that Tsuzuki is your missing pilot? I don't want you getting your hopes up in case we are wrong."

"Ah, but I am 99.9 percent sure that I am _not._ Whatever Muraki did, I can now remember how Duo felt much more clearly. When he came in, before I was fully conscious, I thought he was Duo. Well, he _is_, but you know what I mean."

"Hai. So this is real? Are you going to tell him that you know?"

"Yes, I'll have to. It's not fair, and besides, I want to hug him and tell him to keep in touch a bit better next time."

"Well, in his defense, he couldn't contact you when he was dead and you alive, and I expect that he avoided thinking of you after a while – it must have been painful. So maybe he didn't know that you were Shinigami like he was, and he avoided Sanq, L4 and Arabia in case you saw him and recognized him, or maybe just to avoid the memories, so he never knew."

"That's right, Hisoka. I always knew you were a clever kid."  
"Baka, don't call me- Tsuzuki?"

The tall Shinigami stepped out of the stairwell, staring at the pair. "Wufei and Heero are examining the lab. So, you figured it out, Quatre?"

"Yes…" Hisoka felt a burst of sadness pulse from the blond empath at the admission. The next thing he knew, Quatre was running over to Tsuzuki, tears running down his cheeks. "Oh, Duo! I've missed you so much!"

"Likewise, Cat," Duo said. "Missed ya like hell."

Hisoka noticed an accent to his words that hadn't been there before. Quatre was sobbing into his partner's neck, so Hisoka decided to slip outside and wait for Trowa, leaving the reunited pair alone.

"Why didn't you _say_ something?" Quatre sobbed. Duo closed his eyes, letting the guilt flow through him.

"Fear."

"Fear of _what_!"

"I didn't die straight away. I was tortured for eight years by Muraki's Grandfather. I… it warped my perceptions, maybe. I kept on tellin' myself that you guys would come 'n' save me, but you never did… and then I killed myself and became a Shinigami. After all, I called myself 'Shinigami' before, didn't I? Death will always have somethin' on me, whether I'm a God or a Guardian. So I couldn't contact you, like 'Soka said. I was _dead_. And it was such a fucking _stupid_ way to die."

"Suicide? Stupid?"

"I always figured I'd go out either kickin' butt or by Heero's hand. Maybe self-destruct and take 'Scythe with me."

"Oh, Duo…"

"Cat, you can't tell the others. I _have_ to be Tsuzuki now. Hell, I _am_ Tsuzuki now. I've… I've been more Duo this week than I have for sixty years, but I have a new life."

"But, Duo, what about Heero?"

Duo closed his eyes against the tears. Oh Shit…

Any time before what had happened that morning, and he would have said 'he's forgotten me, and good riddance too'. But after the proof he had received… well. He _couldn't_ just walk away again, could he? Heero still thought of him, maybe even still loved him.

"Cat?"

"Yeah?"

"Did Heero ever get with anyone else?"

"No. He… we tried, we tried so hard, but he said that he didn't want anyone but you, and always hoped that one say you'd come back."

"Oh, kami-sama, I would have if I could…" Duo moaned.

"He threw himself into his work, and it was like he died inside for a while after… after you were captured. It was so hard to get through to him, like back at the start of the first war. But after a while… he sort of woke up again. I asked him about it, he said that you would want him to live. He kept on celebrating the birthday you picked too…"

"Fuck. I had no idea."

"How could you? You were dead!" Quatre protested, wiping his tears away angrily.

Loud footsteps up the stairs broke them apart, and set them frantically rubbing at their eyes as they moved towards the door, blotting away moisture. Luckily, Trowa chose that moment to walk back in, holding an energy drink and some bottles of water. He handed the water to Duo and the energy drink to Quatre.

"Here you go, love," He whispered, enfolding the shorter blond in his arms.

Duo rolled his eyes and moved over to the stairwell to pass Heero a bottle. Wufei was halfway up the flight behind him, so Duo tossed the bottle down, calling "catch!" as he did so. Wufei's head snapped up and his lightening reflexes enabled him to catch the bottle before it hit him on the head rather than afterwards.

"Kisama," he muttered absently as he twisted off the cap and took a long drink. I contacted Merian. She's sending some kind of transport around – we figured that Kurosaki and Winner would not want to walk."

Tsuzuki nodded. "Good thinking. If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go check on 'Soka."

ooooooooooooooooo

Tsuzuki found his partner sitting on the steps outside, sipping at the energy drink Trowa had brought him.

"So, it's true, you were a Gundam pilot," Hisoka said quietly.

"Yes," Tsuzuki said quietly. He could tell that something was bothering his young partner, but he had no idea what it was.

"That explains a few things."

"I expect it does."

"Are you going to stay here?"

"What?"

Hisoka turned anguished green eyes towards his partner. "Are you going to stay here with them? Am I going to loose my partner?"

"Hisoka… why would you think that?"

"You fought beside them. They understand you. One of them would make a much better partner than I would. You'd get along much better-"

Tsuzuki's quiet laugh cut him off and he stared at the older Shinigami curiously.

"Understand me? Hell, they never did."

"But… I thought…"

"We all wore masks during the war. We had our fighting personas. Heero's was the 'Perfect Soldier', Trowa had 'The Mercenary' Quatre's was 'Desert Prince' and Wufei had 'The Dragon'. Mine, ironically, was 'Shinigami'. But while they had one mask, I had two. I had the 'Joker'. And that's who they knew, mainly. 'Perfect Soldier' works well with 'Shinigami', yes. But neither of us are our masks anymore. We were during this mission, out of necessity, and we got the jobs done. But for everyday, the masks are pointless."

"So none of them know you?" Hisoka asked, sipping at the drink and trying to wrap his mind around the concepts Tsuzuki was casually explaining.

"No. Well, Heero started to get to know the 'real' Duo after the war, the second one, but then Muraki Senior captured me and that kinda went down the drain."

"What do you mean?" Hisoka asked curiously.

Duo shot his young partner an appraising look, then grinned in remembrance.

"Heero an' me useta be lovers."

Hisoka blushed crimson. Duo winked at him, and then the slightly (but only slightly) more somber and serious persona of Tsuzuki surfaced. Pure relief washed over Hisoka's features as the other Gundam Pilots pushed open the doors and offered him an out. Tsuzuki chuckled to himself as they rose to their feet. He helped his partner down the driveway to the road, where they found a large car waiting for them.

The ride home was fairly quiet. Quatre curled up in Trowa's arms and Hisoka fell asleep on Tsuzuki's shoulder.

Tsuzuki frowned as something occurred to him. Gently, so as not to wake the exhausted teen, he pushed up Hisoka's sleeve, feeling Wufei's puzzled gaze – Heero was up front with the driver. A relieved smile crossed his features as he saw the marks of the curse already beginning to fade.

Wufei studied Tsuzuki's face with interest. That smile seemed vaguely familiar…

He pulled the end of his braid over his shoulder and toyed with the end, a habit he had picked up post-humorously from Maxwell. Strange how that braided baka had affected his life. Wufei had never regretted growing out his hair in Maxwell's memory, even if it was a pain to take care of. His wasn't nearly as long as Duo's had been though.

Not for the first time, the Chinese Shinigami wondered what had become of the cheerful American he had learned to call 'friend'.

(Little did he know, said American was grinning happily less than three feet away, minus his distinctive braid.)

x

All of the magic is mostly made up. Suzaku is one of Tsuzuki's Shikigami, and does appear as a phoenix, and Tsuzuki can do Fuda magic, but fuda darts I kinda made up. Also, Hisoka was learning magic in the series – didn't want to let Tsuzuki down – so I think him making his own shield is not too far fetched. As for the Shadowhounds… well, I have no idea what they were called in the series, but they were made out of black ethereal stuff, had large teeth and bat wings.

Spanish:

È giusto, amore, io sono benissimo, esso è giusto, esso è giusto, io sono qui, io sono sicuro... - It's ok, love, I'm fine, It's ok, it's ok, I'm here, I'm safe…

Japanese

Kami-sama – God.

Kisama - really rude form of 'you'. Used kinda like 'asshole' or 'bastard' would be.


	10. Talking it Out

Gomen nasai for the wait! I am so, so sorry! SZ is drawing to a close, and I am determined to finish it! Real Life and WJ&aA (original thing I am writing) got in the way! Gomen! Please forgive me!

x

Heero made his way quickly to his room, locking the door behind him. He sat on the bed and ran a shaky hand through his hair, cursing his habit of walking softly for the first time he could remember.

If he had not left Wufei downstairs, contacting Merian, if he had not walked quietly up the stairs… if he had made more noise he might not have overheard what he had overheard, but he had and the new knowledge was pounding in his brain, repeating over and over. How could he not have guessed?

Looking back, it was so obvious. So many small clues. How could he not have figured out that Duo was alive! Well, not alive… Shinigami were not technically alive, per se, but he was still mostly corporeal. He should have known that Duo would not rest peacefully.

Asato Tsuzuki… Duo Maxwell…

One and the same pilot. The man he had loved… the memory he was still in love with. But how much had he changed? And why had he not contacted them when they became Shinigami?

There was a large lump in his throat and he felt like crying, but he was afraid that if he started he would never stop. He didn't know Tsuzuki, and despite the moments of synchronization with him, the other man was different, probably more different than he realized.

But the core of Duo was likely to still be the same… the major events that had shaped his life happened before or during the period of time they had been together. The Shinigami job surely wasn't going to offer that many life changing experiences?

But doing it for more than seventy years… he was bound to have changed.

oooooooooooooooo

Heero realized that he was arguing with himself, desperately hoping for something that probably was not true. Duo… Tsuzuki was almost a stranger, and Heero had changed himself. What there once was between them was no more… he had just a memory now.

But… Heero couldn't seem to quench the hope.

Maybe… maybe if they got to know each other again, they would find that something was still there?

Heero glanced at his watch. It was getting late, and he knew that Tsuzuki hadn't eaten much all day – they had mostly skipped lunch. He would invite the violet eyed Shinigami out to dinner and they could see where that led…

ooooooooooooooooo

Duo stared curiously at his dinner companion over the rim of his glass. "Ne, Heero, why did you bring me here?"

Heero swallowed. "Today… well, uh…"

"You wanted to celebrate or something?" the violet eyed man guessed. "Why not with the others?" he asked curiously.

"I came up the stairs before Wufei."

Duo felt the colour drain from his cheeks. "You… oh." He suddenly felt cold and afraid. "Are you mad? How much did you hear?"

"Enough to figure it out. Why would I be angry?" Heero asked, sounding genuinely puzzled. Duo risked a quick glance up and saw nothing but worry in his deep blue eyes.

"I… I left you," he answered after a pause.

"You were taken."

"Well, yeah, but getting myself captured like that was so _stupid_, and I didn't manage to escape…so stupid. Such a baka, you were right…"

"It was peace time, you weren't expecting an attack. And he was good; I never found you."

"Never?"

"Never. I looked for years."

"When I became a Shinigami, I was forbidden to contact you, as I was dead… could cause complications, y'know? And I kept my promise. I didn't even look for you because it hurt too much. By the time you joined me it had been so long… I was scared that you wouldn't want to know me anymore. I'm… I'm not one of you anymore."

"Yes, you are, Duo," Heero insisted. Duo sniffed, and shook his head. "Once a Gundam Pilot, always a Gundam Pilot," he continued. "Together, a team. You taught us that, Duo, you and Quatre."

"But-"

"No buts. Now, who knows?"

"Well, Quatre and Hisoka do… I figure Hisoka helped Quatre work it out. Merian knows. I haven't told Wufei or Trowa… or rather, I don't think they've figured it out."

"Merian?"

"While you were playing that damn song, I was… very upset. She found me, and, well, she knew something was up. She wondered if I had been killed by you guys and was harboring a grudge. I had to tell her the truth… I hate lying anyhow."

"Still?"

"Some things never change."

"Duo, I… I'd like to get to know you again."

Duo looked up, blinking tears away from his eyes. "Really?" he asked. Heero chuckled softly.

"Yes, baka. We were friends once, and something more for a time. I've missed you."

"Heero… I dunno…"

"I know that we've both changed. But at least let me try to be your friend again."

"Uh, ok…"

"The only thing is… Relena."

Duo blinked. "Ok, now you've got me really confused."

Heero sighed and toyed with his napkin. "I stayed in Sanq, rather than moving to Japan or L1, because of Relena. I want to protect her even now. Once she has passed away I can move wherever I like, but until then… I vowed to protect her."

"And you should honor that vow."

Heero blinked at his companion across the table. "You sound more like Wufei than the Duo I know… knew. It's kinda weird… especially as he grew his hair out like you."

Duo smiled, but then shuddered, raising a hand to his head. Heero immediately looked concerned. Duo looked up, gave him a quick smile, then turned his attention to the single carnation on the centre of the table.

"What is it?" Heero asked, concerned. Duo shrugged.

"It's nothing."

"Duo..." Heero studied his companion intently, his mind running over their conversation. Something occurred to him and his eyes widened in shock. "Wait a minute. You didn't cut off your hair by choice, did you?" He asked. Duo shook his head miserably. "Oh, Duo..."

"He did it. He hacked it off. Because he wouldn't let me take care of it and he couldn't be bothered. So he said that it had to go. Heero," Duo raised tear filled eyes to the ex-pilot's face. "I kept my hair long through living on the streets, the destruction of Maxwell church and two wars! It was a part of me, a big part, and he just took it!"

Heero's hand snuck across the table of its own accord and gripped Duo's tightly.

"Didn't even ask me, just told me. I loved that braid! It reminded me of Sister Helen, of Solo, and in a small way of you and Deathscythe. Coming here has unearthed so many memories, seeing all of you again is something I never thought that I would be able to do, and I have, and... oh God it hurt so much! I know hair is dead and all, but every time he cut through a strand it hurt!"

"You could grow it out again," Heero said sensibly. In fact, why haven't you? You're immortal now, there's nothing to stop you."

Duo shook his head miserably. "I'd have to ask the Count, and he scares me. When you become a Shinigami, you choose a form, and that's that. That's how you look to be in your 20's now, rather than old. You could have chosen to look 15 again, but that makes it a little hard to get into places with age restrictions, and to ask questions of people. They prefer you not to be that young - Hisoka is pretty exceptional in that regard. I am the way I was when I died - I committed suicide, so now I'm stuck like this unless I beg."

"This sounds very convoluted. Have you actually asked about this?"

"Uh, not really."

"I think you should. From what I've seen that's not exactly how they go about deciding your appearance. Besides, you became a Shinigami over 70 years ago. Something is bound to have changed."

"But…"

"No buts. Now, what are you eating?"

A sudden spark of rebellion lit in Duo's eyes. "No way are you ordering for me, Yuy!"

Heero grinned. "Ah, that's the Duo Maxwell we all know and love. Knew that he was hiding in there somewhere."

"Heero… I've changed."

"So have I. Lets see if some things don't. Now, what are you having?"

oooooooooooooooooooo

Trowa and Quatre snuggled together against the headboard of their king sized bed, Quatre cradled in the arms of his taller husband. The remains of a meal on the bedside table and the vitamin drink showed that coddling had taken place.

Trowa sighed and breathed in the scent of Quatre's soft blond hair. "I was so scared that I had lost you," he murmured in Spanish.

"I was fine… although what he was doing was dangerous," Quatre replied in the same language.

"What?"

"He took me back in time mentally… I thought that I had been captured by someone, and I was insisting that he wouldn't make me tell him where the Gundams were."

"Hm."

"If he had taken me back to that time where I was controlled by the Zero System… it could have got very ugly."

Trowa hugged him tighter. His Husband sighed and relaxed into the embrace, staring down at the twin gold rings that glinted on their joined hands. Trowa had bought his with his own money, made from working in the circus, and that had made the gift so much more precious…

"I want to make you something," Quatre said suddenly. Trowa shifted, and Quatre felt his surprise and curiosity. "You bought me this ring with your own money, you worked for it. The ring I gave you… hell, I had enough money to buy it when I was three. I can't work hard to get the money to buy you something, so I'm going to make you something."

"Quatre, angel, you don't need to! Just being with you is enough."

"But… you would have something to really remember me by if we ever get separated if I do. No arguments, now! Let's just enjoy the quiet time before all the paperwork begins. I bet that damn building was Listed; it would be just our luck… (1)

"Huh?"

"That opera house."

"Oh, yeah."

Quatre smiled lovingly up at his husband. "Tired, love?"

"A little," the ex-acrobat admitted.

"Then let's sleep, I confess to being weary myself."

oooooooooooooooooooo

"Despite his trepidation on hearing the news that Heero know knew of his identity, Duo found himself enjoying the meal. Now that there were no secrets between them they were able to talk about the past, about their shared experiences in the wars and some of their exploits while being Shinigami.

He found himself missing his braid more than he had in months, but Heero's suggestion to grow his hair out again appealed to him greatly. He found himself fascinated by the changes that time had wrought in his companion. Heero had grown old in the mortal world, something that Tsuzuki had never had the chance to do. He had experienced more than Duo would ever be able to do. But Duo did not envy his companion; Heero was more than willing to share. And he was secretly convinced that growing old wasn't all that much fun anyhow.

"Heero… remember that holiday we took after the second war? When we went to Hawaii and I insisted that you wore those strings of flowers around your neck?"

"How could I forget? That was the holiday where you first swam in the sea, rather than in a training tank or school pool."

"We also learnt to surf, remember?" Duo reminded him, smiling at the memory.

"Yeah… and what those drinks served in cocoa nuts actually tasted like."

"Remember the time we got really drunk and scandalized the old lady in the elevator?"

"Cause we were so horny that we couldn't keep our hands off each other," Heero finished.

They caught each other's eyes, and Tsuzuki could feel himself falling into a trance as he gazed. He ducked his head, and felt a blush spreading against his cheeks. "We shouldn't."

Heero's blue eyes were intense. "I know."

Duo risked a quick glance up, then looked hurriedly away. "So stop _looking_ at me like that!"

Heero leaned close across the table. "I never stopped wanting you, never stopped looking for you, never stopped loving you. Hell," a wry grin crossed his features. "I never stopped dreaming of you or jerking off to the memory of you afterwards."

"I know," Duo admitted in a low voice. "I heard. And… it was the same for me."

"Then why can't we?" Heero asked insistently.

Duo shook his head. "We don't know each other anymore. Friends first, that's the way it has to be."

"Seriously, though, if you had only just met me, and you liked me, would you have started a relationship with me by now?"

Duo looked away, considering. "Maybe."

"Duo… Tsuzuki… I admit that I liked you even not knowing who you were. Maybe not enough to consider a relationship – you had not proved yourself trustworthy. But now I know you have a thousand times over in the past, and I like this new you enough to chance it. Will you chance it with me?"

"But you have to stay here, in Sanq. And my place is in Japan, with my partner."

A loud beeping cut through their conversation. Heero sighed, and rolled his eyes as he pulled out his 'phone.

"Yuy. Nani! … Hai… Wakarimashite. Hai. Ja." He snapped the phone shut and turned serious eyes towards Tsuzuki. "I have to leave… something to do with Relena. You coming?"

"Right behind you, Aibou. If you'll have me."

"I wouldn't want anyone else."

x

(1) for those people who didn't get that, a Listed building are those that are considered historic (quite a lot are really old places, like Castles) and you're not allowed to make ANY structural changes without permission from the council and the historians society and a whole bunch of other people. Seriously, these people cannot put up a trellis or hang a picture nail.

Nani! – what the?

Hai – yes

Wakarimashite – I understand. (Old Heero would have used Ryoukai. See how far my baby has come! )

Ja – part of Ja ne. Basically Bye or See ya.

Aibou – partner. (Duo used to call Deathscythe Aibou)


	11. Remeeting Relena

Kinda a short chapter, but I wanted to get it out before I just left it sitting around for a few weeks! I'll get started on chapter 12 in the next few days, promise!

x

Duo had always hated hospitals. Tsuzuki hated them even more. Just being in a hospital building was liable to give him flashbacks, and a few times he had gone into shock. His phobia had lost him several partners.

Heero managed to figure out that a) he had a problem b) what it was and c) how to deal with it before they had got up to the nurses station. Well, of course, he had been the 'Perfect Soldier' once upon a time.

"Duo… Tsuzuki… Daijoubu. You're safe, it's clear. No one is gonna hurt you," he muttered, keeping up a continuous monologue which he only paused to mutter something quietly to the nurse. Duo's hand strayed without his knowledge or consent to lightly touch the back of Heero's. Heero turned, smiled, and entwined their fingers together. The violet eyed Shinigami suddenly felt extremely young as his old comrade led him down the corridor, giving anyone who looked like they were even thinking about stopping them a toned down version of his glare o'death™.

Even toned down, his icy blue gaze was extremely intimidating. Tsuzuki just kept his head down and hoped not to be noticed.

Heero paused at a door, tapped on it, and then barged in without waiting for a reply. The room was empty, except for an old woman apparently dozing on the bed, a vase of red roses on the table beside her.

"We must have the wrong room," Tsuzuki said. "Quick, let's go before she wakes up."

Heero gave him an odd look. "This is the right room," he said.

"Nan ka? But… who is she then? I thought we were here because of Relena-san."

The old lady on the bed opened a pair of sharp blue eyes. "I am Relena, young man. Since you use my name so freely, dare da?"

"Watashi wa Tsuzuki Asato desu. Shinigami desu. Anata wa… Relena! Masaka!"

"Relena-san," Heero injected. Relena gasped.

"I must have gone mad," she whispered, fisting the white bed sheets tightly. "You look exactly as Heero did."

"I am Heero, Relena-san. I'm a Shinigami now."

"Isn't that what Duo used to call himself? Shinigami?"

"Yes, I did. Now it's a real job, Ojousan! I'm even getting paid," Duo said, getting over his shock at Relena's age… technically speaking she was nearly 100…

"Nan ka… Duo? Duo Maxwell, is that really you?"

"Yes Ma'am."

Relena blinked at him, fumbled for the glasses hanging from an elegant gold chain around her neck, put them on and blinked at him again. "Duo… what happened to your hair! How could you cut it off? It was so beautiful… if a little impractical. Anyway, where did you go?"

"I was taken by a scientist… it seems that peace wasn't as thorough as we had hoped, ojousan."

"Gomen."

"It was not your fault."

Relena fell quiet and seemed to collect herself a little. "Duo…. You said that you really were Shinigami now. Does that mean…?"

"Ask Heero, he was the one that brought me here."

Relena turned to Heero. The Shinigami ran a hand through his perpetually messy hair and nodded reluctantly. "You have until dawn."

"So I will see my last sunrise?"

"Yes."

"Am I allowed to call people?"  
"Yes, just don't mention us," Tsuzuki said. Relena gave him a sharp look.

"You're entire demeanor just changed… it was like we were strangers for a minute. You have changed, Duo. Was that a glimpse of the Shinigami I saw? How long have you been doing this?"

"Over 70 years."

Relena looked sad. "You died a long time ago now, Duo. I missed you."

"I missed you too," the Shinigami admitted.

"Not as much as Heero did, though. Say, can I hug you?"

"I am corporeal, you know. So's Heero, how else could we open the doors? Look pretty weird if we just walked through them."

"Other people can see you too?"

"Yes, unless we don't want them too."

"Duo, you are talking too much," Heero interrupted.

"Heero, she's gonna be gone soon anyways. Hey, we can stay with her until the end just to make sure that she doesn't tell, ok?"

Heero nodded. "Ok. I'm going to call the office. The others will want to know."

"The others?" Relena questioned.

"Quatre, Trowa, Wufei and Meiran," Heero listed. Relena smiled.

"Oh, I will enjoy meeting them again!"

"What about 'Soka?"

"Kurosaki-kun will probably stay back at base. Meiran might too… she died before Relena could meet you. But we will never find out unless you stop asking me questions so that I can make the call."

Relena winked at Tsuzuki. "I see he hasn't changed."

"Oh I wouldn't say that… he's come a long way since that baseball game."

"Baseball game?" Relena asked. "Do tell! I haven't heard this story, and when you get to my age there's not a lot that you haven't heard."

"Ok… it all started when we ended up in Seattle after the war…"

ooooooflashbackooooo

Seattle was one of the last cities to still have a proper arena for games. So, of course, Duo had to go. And that meant that Heero had to go too.

"Aw, come on, man! It's just one game. I always wanted to see a game of baseball! Just this once? Please?"

Heero sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine. Will they search us on the way in?"

"Uh… I don't know. Wait a minute…" the braided teen eyed his partner seriously. "You aren't thinking of taking your gun to a baseball match, are you?"

"Of course. Weren't you?"

"I was gonna take a few knives… it'll be crowded, Heero. Gunshots could cause a panic.

"Hn. I shall still take my gun."

"Fine! So long as you'll go with me. Some of the baseball shirts or jackets are pretty baggy, you should be able to hide it ok."

"Shirts?" Heero inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, if we're going, we're going all out! This is the Mariners! They're like, the only team that has played continuously all these years! Even the Red Sox stopped for about 20 years before they started up again! And look at them now! They don't even have a proper home stadium anymore!"

"Hn."

"Oh, Heero, this'll be great, just you wait and see!"

They had got to the pitch about ten minutes before the game started. "I'm gonna go get something to eat. You want anything?"

"Iie. I'm fine."

"Don't trust the food, huh? Probably wise."

"If you buy anything with garlic in it I'll refuse to kiss you," Heero said matter of factly.

"Man, Heero!" Duo whined. "But those garlic fries smell so good!"

"I never said that you couldn't have any, I just said that I wouldn't kiss you if you did."

"Hmph. Same difference."

Duo reappeared five minutes later, carrying two containers of drink, a bag of cotton candy, a hotdog and two bags of peanuts. He had a new baseball cap on his head, with the Mariners logo emblazoned on the front and there was a bag hooked over one of his arms.

"Phew, carrying all that lot was hard!" he exclaimed as he sat down next to his… extremely tense and worried partner who was staring around continuously and had one hand on his weapon. Not good. Proceed with caution.

"Heero? I got you some water."

There was no response.

"And some peanuts, in case you get hungry later."

Heero looked at him for a moment, expressionless, and then went back to scanning the crowd.

"I also got us some jackets, cause it's probably gonna get cold later – Earth doesn't exactly have environmental controls."

"Baka, of course it doesn't."

Ahh! A response. Probably safe to touch him now. Duo laid a cautious hand over Heero's. "Heero? Are you ok? It's clear, they're all civilians, and the war is over."

"…Hai."

"Daijoubu ka?"

"Daijoubu."

"Good. I didn't get anything with garlic, can I have a kiss? No-one is watching."

Heero looked around, still partially in mission mode, and then leant down to give Duo a lingering kiss on the lips. Once he drew away, he blinked and sighed, his hand finally falling away from his gun.

"That's better. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left you alone," Duo said regretfully.

"It's ok. Hey, it looks like you missed the beginning of the game. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry, it's ok. Let's watch and eat! Besides, this is only the opposing team, the Mariners play after them."

"Ok, explain this to me… which team is which?"

Oooooend flashbackooooo

Duo laughed. "He was so tense and uptight that entire game! I had to jerk him out of 'Mission Mode' five times! I think the worst was when I went to the restroom in the 5th inning, and a little girl from the row in front tried to talk to him."

Relena smiled. "So that's why he used to go misty-eyed every time we went to a baseball game – which wasn't often, mind you. Mariamaia's daughter wanted to go and see a game for her 16th birthday, and she wanted us all to go, so we did. Heero must have been remembering you."

"I was," Heero's deep voice interrupted. "The others are on their way. Are you up to visitors, Relena-jisan?"

Relena hoisted herself straighter in the bed. "Of course I am!"

ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Duo rested for a while in the waiting area close to Relena's room. He needed some time out of there to think. The other ex-pilots had arrived, and were talking to Relena. None of them seemed to be shocked at her age, as he had been. It was disconcerting. Duo had never been old, never had a chance to, and seeing Relena lying in bed with a face full of wrinkles and her hair faded to white had been a shock to his system – although he had managed to hide it fairly well from the others.

He hated hospitals. He was nervous and jumpy, and his hands were trembling. Funny, how he used to be so proud of the way that his hands never shook while hacking or wiring explosives, but he couldn't handle an ordinary hospital, when he wasn't even ill! Of course, he hadn't been ill when Muraki had captured him either…

_When they said 'scarred for life' it really does mean life_, he reflected.

"Tsuzuki?"

"Hai?"

He looked up into Wufei's deep black eyes.

"How are you? I imagine that this must be rather uncomfortable for you, seeing as you did not know Relena."

"Oh, but I did," Duo murmured softly.

"What? You died a long time ago, when she was still a girl. How could you know her?"

"I may as well tell you, it's all going to come out soon anyway. Meiran knows. She was 26 when I died, exactly the same age as me, and I last saw her when we were 17 or so. You were there, I think."

"What?"

Duo sighed and allowed his old accent to show in his voice. "Man, 'Fei, wouldn't of thought you'd a' forgott'n 'bout me so soon! We useta be buddies, 'member? All the hackin' an kickin' ass?"

Wufei's eyes stretched so wide Duo was afraid that they would fall straight out of his head. "Maxwell?" He asked incredulously.

"Lovin' the hair, 'Fei. Seriously, 'M honored. Ya don't pull it off half so good as I did, tho!" Tsuzuki dropped his head and dropped the jester's act at the same time. "Yeah, it's me. Learnt how to talk properly since we last met."

A hand on his shoulder made him jump slightly, and he looked up into a compassionate face. "You always talked properly, Duo. Except for your mangling of my name, which I do not mind as much as I did, there was nothing wrong with the way you talked."

"I had an L2 street kid's accent, Wufei! That was considered unacceptable in most parts of the Earth Sphere!"

Wufei shook his head, and pulled Duo into a hug. "I'm sorry if your accent ever coloured my responses to you or made me question your abilities," he murmured into Duo's hair.

Duo lifted a shaky hand and ran it down the length of Wufei's braid.

"I miss my hair," was all he could say.

"Then I promise that I will somehow find a way to get it back for you. You have my word."

x

Masaka – "It can't be!"

Ojousan – Almost like "Milady", what Duo used to call Relena.


	12. Homecoming

Gomen, minna-san! This has been sitting on my HD for weeks now, waiting to be updated. Well, its here now... ;

This chapter has taken a slight 'Matrix' turn… well, it seems that way to me. All the stuff about mental images. Ooh, lets see who can spot the music reference! (Cryptic Clue: School of Rock)

x

Tsuzuki blinked as he was dragged down the corridors of the Sanq JuOhCho by an extremely determined Chang Wu Fei. The last time Duo had seen that particular expression had been when a reporter had tried to waylay the man on his way to the Preventer's main office. The feed had been broadcast all over Earth and the Colonies, and he and Heero had laughed about it, commenting on how some people never change.

"Uh…. Wufei?"

"Hn."

Seems like someone's been hanging out with Heero too much.

"Where are we going?"

"To see someone."

Well, that was informative.

"Who?"

"Hm?"

"Who are we going to see?"

Instead of answering, Wufei screeched to a halt outside a plain, unadorned door. He tapped twice, then pushed it open. Tsuzuki was immediately reminded of Watari's lab. Whoever worked here had the same sense of humour.

"Ah! Chang! What can I do for you?" Asked an extremely tall African woman, her short hair braided tight against her head.

"Desi. My… friend here used to have long hair when he was alive. It was cut off before he died. Can you get it back?"

Desi nodded thoughtfully. "It is likely. We are merely memories of how we used to be after all."

"What… what do you mean?" Tsuzuki asked.

She looked at him in surprise. "Don't you know? We are merely spiritual energy given form, and the form that we take corresponds to how we see ourselves. Chang, here, in his own mind never aged after 25, and that is why he looks the way he does."

"So…. If I think I have my braid back, it will be back?"

"Something like that…. The trouble is that you _know_ that your hair was cut."

"So how do we fix that?" Wufei asked impatiently.

"I use hypnosis to convince… what was your name again?"

"Uh… Tsuzuki Asato."

"Tsuzuki that his hair was never cut. Do you have any old pictures? They would help."

Wufei hesitated, then pulled a folded A4 sheet(1) out of his pocket and handed it to her. She unfolded it, and Duo leaned over to sneak a peep. He gasped, and pulled it away from her, staring from the paper to Wufei and then back to the paper in shock.

"Wu… wha… why? When?" he gasped.

It was a colour shot, that only showed Duo from the knees up. He was standing in a park, his face turned up to the tree showering purple blossoms down on his upturned face. The sun was shining, highlighting his features and casting golden highlights all the way down his long chestnut braid.

"Heero took it," Wufei said softly. "He gave it to me when my hair was first long enough to braid properly."

"Wufei…"

"Mine's never been as beautiful as that… mine was just a tribute to yours."

Desi coughed softly. "Do you want to get started?"

"Hai. Gomen nasai…" Tsuzuki said without thinking.

"What?"

"He said yes and apologized," Wufei translated.

"Oh. Lets get started then."

oooooooooooooooooooo

Relena screamed when Duo walked back into the room.

"Duo! Your HAIR!"

"Yeah," he said with a grin, leaning over to hug her. "Wufei managed to get it back for me."

"How?"

Duo grinned impishly, violet eyes sparkling. "Magic."

"Oh, don't you give me that, Duo Maxwell." Relena lectured, her smile turning her face into a mass of wrinkles. She sighed, running a hand along the length of his braid, her expression turning wistful. "Duo."

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I'm dying tonight. Can you do one thing for me?"

"Sure, Relena," Duo said, sniffing a little. "What is it?"

"Let your hair down for me. I've… I've always wanted to see it."

Heero stood up. "We should leave," he said to the other pilots. Trowa nodded, and pulled Quatre to his feet.

"Wufei can stay," Duo said quickly, a blush spreading over his face. "After all, he was the one to get it back for me."

The Chinese Shinigami nodded, and moved to sit by the head of the bed, a position previously help by Heero. Once the door had closed behind Heero, Duo took a deep breath and pulled off the band at the end of his braid. Despite all his time without, his fingers quickly worked their way through the thick, wavy chestnut mass, unweaving the traditional braid.

Relena gasped as his hair fell from his fingers, a shimmering golden brown waterfall. It haloed around him, sliding over his shoulders and down his arms. Duo self-consciously twirled a lock of it in his fingers.

"It's a bitch to wash and brush. It takes so much conditioner you would'na believe, so I wear it back. It gets everywhere, 'n' if I sleep with it down it'd prob'ly strangle me," he muttered, reverting back to his L2 accent.

"It's beautiful," Relena sighed.

"There's so much of it!" Wufei exclaimed, his eyes tracing the length. Unbound, Duo's hair now fell to halfway down his thighs. (2)

Duo blushed again, and began to plait, his fingers moving quickly down the length of his hair. "Ok, show's over. Wufei, you can tell the guys to come in now."

"Thank you, Duo," Relena said. "I don't really know what to say."

"The last person I let my hair down for was… hm. Sister Helen, voluntarily. She was the one who first braided it."

"How old were you?"

"I dunno. Less than ten."

"So, Heero's never?"

"No… I might have, eventually, if things hadn't gone the way they had."

Relena's eyes filled with tears. "I asked a greater gift from you than I knew. I shall always treasure the memory."

Duo smiled. "Now, Milady, I'm afraid it's time."

Relena smiled back. "It is?"

"Yes. Do you want to call someone quick?" Quatre asked, sliding past Duo with his phone in hand.

Relena shook her head. "No… they would only fuss, and I might not have time to finish the call. I want my life to end here, with those who have protected me."

"In life and in death," Heero said, sweeping her white hair off of her face with gentle fingers.

"Duo?" Relena asked, turning her head to search for him.

"Yes? I'm here."

"You're a Shinigami now?"

"Yes," Duo said softly. Relena's strength was leaving her and he could hardly bear to watch as the light in her eyes faded.

"So… you've always been a God of Death."

"Yes, I have."

"I missed you."

"I kinda missed you too, Ojousan."

Relena's eyes drooped and she smiled weakly. "Haven't been called that for a long, long time…"

oooooooooooooooooooooo

Duo said numbly on his bed, brushing out his hair for the first time in years. He didn't actually have to do it – it would stay clean and untangled with very little care now that it was strands of spiritual ether – but the ritual was calming and soothing.

There was a knock at the door, which he instinctively knew was Heero. He gave the hairband around his wrist a quick glance, then called "wait a minute!" and quickly braided his hair. He certainly wasn't ready for _that_ yet.

Soon his hair was braided again, and Heero was standing uncertainly just inside the door. "Hi. Um… well, Relena is, uh, has moved on," Heero began.

"Yes."

"So, uh, I was wondering…" he tailed off.

Duo rolled his eyes. "You never used to have a problem saying what you thought, Heero! You want to know if you're still welcome to come back to Japan with me, correct?" Heero nodded. "Well, the answer is yes. Not as if I could stop you if you wanted to come anyhow."

Heero smiled, and Duo's breath caught. He'd forgotten how beautiful Heero looked when he smiled, how his eyes lit up, little lines crinkling around the edges.

"Duo, arigato. Domo arigato," he said, bowing slightly.

"Hey, you've never bowed to me before, don't start now!" Duo protested.

Heero took a deep breath. "Can I hug you instead?"

"I… I guess so," Duo half whispered, refusing to meet Heero's eyes. He had a horrible feeling of being out of control, like driving a shuttle with malfunctioning thrusters. Heero moved hesitantly towards him, and he was in his arms, and if suddenly felt like only yesterday that they had been together.

But it wasn't yesterday, it had been more than 80 years, and they had both changed. Despite Heero's hug feeling exactly the same. So Tsuzuki drew back, reluctantly.

"Remember what I said. Dating first, ok?"

"People can hug on a first date. Some people kiss."

"Don't push your luck," Tsuzuki warned, refusing to look at Heero.

He felt a warm, calloused hand slide around his own, raising it to a pair of flushed lips. "I wouldn't dream of it," Heero murmured, brushing his lips over the back of Duo's hand and then turning to stride out of the room.

"Yare yare!" Tsuzuki exclaimed, falling backwards onto the bed with a thump.

The next person to knock on the door was Hisoka. Tsuzuki immediately felt guilty – he had been neglecting his partner somewhat on this mission.

"Konbanwa," he said cheerfully, automatically pasting his normal cheery grin onto his face.

"Konbanwa," Hisoka replied in his normal monotone voice. "Who do you persist in the act?"

"Hm?"

"I know that you aren't actually that cheerful."

"Hisoka… I've been wearing this mask since I was about ten. It's as much a comfort for me as it is for those around me," Tsuzuki explained, still smiling.

"Your hair is different," Hisoka stated, changing the subject abruptly.

Tsuzuki shook his head. "No, it's back to normal. It was never my choice to cut it."

Hisoka moved so that he could see the full length of the chestnut braid. "It's pretty long."

"I know. I was growing it forever… it's actually slightly shorter than it was when it was first cut. I imagined it the way it was back at the beginning of the war – after a while it got so that I would sit on it without meaning to, which was annoying."

"How did you get it back?"

"Apparently we are spiritual images of the way that we see ourselves. So all I had to do was be convinced that my hair was still there."

"Goku kantan desu ka?"

"Hai, so da."

Hisoka paused, frowning. Then he burst out with; "I missed you."

"Huh?"

"I… I missed working with you."

"You were captured," Tsuzuki pointed out.

"Because you weren't there."

Tsuzuki got a little annoyed. "If you're blaming Quatre-"

"Chigau!" Hisoka corrected hurriedly. "I… I just can't help thinking that when Heero comes back to Japan with us, you will partner him, not me."

"Hisoka…" Tsuzuki muttered, dumbstruck.

"Betsuni. Ore no baka desu. Gomen nasai, Tsuzuki-san."

"Baka ja nai, Hisoka. And you've never called me 'san' in your life, uh, death, anyway: don't start now!"

"I…"

"No," Tsuzuki interrupted him. "Shut up a minute. You're normally good at that. Heero… Yuy and I have history. But you are my partner, not him. And you will stay my partner, ok? Heero is not gonna replace you in my eyes unless Konoe says different. Understand?"

"Hai."

"Good. Now, go get some sleep. You look like a panda."

Hisoka managed to summon a weary smile. Tsuzuki gave him a hug, something which he did not do often, and ruffled his hair, before steering him out the door.

oooooooooooooooo

The next day they were on a plane home. Hisoka kept on shooting Heero guarded glances, which Heero pretended to ignore, and Duo felt like he was caught in the middle.

"Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you," he said mournfully to the tuft at the end of his braid. Heero and Hisoka snorted.

"Baka." They said in unison. Then started and stared at each other in amazement.

"If I wasn't you wouldn't know what to do with me," Tsuzuki retorted.

"I think," Hisoka said carefully, "That we might be more alike than we first realized."

Heero nodded. "We have him in common at least."

ooooooooooooooooo

The trio found a welcome committee waiting for them at the airport. Tsuzuki smacked himself on the forehead. "I forgot to buy presents! The boss'll kill me!"

"Don't worry," Hisoka said in his normal monotone. "I figured you would, so I got them."

Tsuzuki shot his partner a grateful glance. "Arigato, Hisoka." He turned in time to catch Heero's amused look. "What?"

"You work well together."

Duo signed. "Like we did?"

"Like we did."

"Notice the past tense," Hisoka muttered as he walked past them and received an enthusiastic hug from Watari.

"He's a little worried that you'll replace him," Tsuzuki said in response to Heero's raised eyebrow. "Well, come and meet the gang."

They walked towards the cheerful group of people together, Tsuzuki hurriedly whispering identities as they went.

"Blond guy in the lab coat is Watari, our genki scientist. The old guy who looks like he's been sucking lemons is Kanoe. The fluttery owl thingies that look like plushies are GuShoShin, our records keepers. Tall brunette with glasses is Tatsumi, the secretary you do not wanna mess with. The girls are Torii and Fukiya. Ok? Oh, and the floating gloves and mask is the Count. Hm, wonder what he's doing out of his mansion?"

"I think I can remember that."

"Okairi, Tsuzuki-san!" GuShoShin chirped in unison.

"Tadaima," Tsuzuki responded with a smile. "Jumping the gun a little there, weren't we?"

One of the floating Gods shrugged. "Whatever it takes to make you feel welcome."

"Why, Tsuzuki, your hair!" Watari exclaimed in surprise. "It's longer than mine!"

"Oh, um, long story I'll tell you later?"

"Does it have anything to do with this young man you seem to have brought back with you?" Torii asked.

Heero tapped Duo on the shoulder. "You mean you didn't tell them I was coming?" he asked.

"Ano… iie?"

"Baka."

"Hai, baka desu. Gomen, Hii-chan."

Heero growled and Duo ducked before he even started his casual swing to clip him on the back of the head.

"You two look like you know each other," Tatsumi observed. "Our transport is this way."

"Old acquaintances," Heero said easily as they walked.

"Old? How old?" Watari asked, stepping backwards so that he could join in the conversation. 003 faced forwards and cheeped when there were people in the way.

"Back from when we were both alive," Tsuzuki said.

"That's old," Fukiya muttered to Torii. "Tsuzuki's been working here since the Feudal Era, I should think."

"Not quite that long," Tsuzuki corrected her with a grin. "Since a few years after the Barton Uprising though."

"The what?"

"It only lasted a few weeks, if that," Heero pointed out. "They probably wouldn't know about it."

"Heh, but infiltrating that base sure was fun! Particularly when we got there and found Trowa already inside."

"You have a strange definition of fun, Du- Tsuzuki."

"Du-Tsuzuki?"

"Uuhh… I guess I'll let you guys in on a little info when we get back. Otherwise you might get confused, and probably very suspicious."

"Tsuzuki, I can easily call you by your current name," Heero protested. "You do not have to-"

"Heero, buddy, I've worked with these people for the best part of a centaury. They deserve to know a little of the truth. Besides, they're curious now and you know I hate lying."

"Some things never change," Heero commented as he sat down.

"Be glad for that."

ooooooooooooooooooooo

Once JuMoCho was reached, Tsuzuki, Hisoka and Heero were herded into the conference room to hand in their reports, and, as Heero quickly discovered, to be interrogated on every little important detail. However, important depended solely on the questioner.

"Are the Barton couple very cute?"

"What kind of food do they have in Sanq?"

"Did you see Princess Relena?"

"Yes," Tsuzuki said, causing a sudden hush to fall.

"Tsuzuki-san, you really met Relena Peacecraft?" Tatsumi asked incredulously.

"Yes, we're old acquaintances."

"Now, this story I gotta hear," Watari said, with a huge grin on his face.

"Ok, sit tight and listen, cause I'm not gonna repeat myself."

Heero was amused to see that the other Shinigami immediately shut up and looked attentive. Duo sent Heero a questioning glance, and Heero smiled at him. Duo smiled back, then turned to his audience.

"Ok, I haven't been completely straight with you guys. Tsuzuki Asato wasn't the name that I was born with. I don't know the name I was born with. The name I used for most of my living life was Duo Maxwell. I was born in AC 180. I died in 206. Let me tell you a little of the world that I grew up in. Ok?"

There were nods around the table.

"The governments on Earth were suppressing the colonies. Then the colonies fought back, using Gundams. Everyone know about that war?" Everyone nodded. "I was on L2 when it started. I grew up there. There were a lot of plagues on L2, and one of them wiped out pretty much my whole gang, including Solo, the leader. That's when I became Duo. The rest of us got taken in by Maxwell Church. The church got blown up by the Alliance. I ended up back on the streets. That's where I got my second name."

"Um, Tsuzuki-san?"

"Yes?"

"How come you've ended up in Japan then?"

"Well, after the war I was wandering around with a buddy, when I got captured by Muraki's Grandfather. You all know the outcome of that little scenario. The friend I was with was a Japanese colonial. So, I stayed here, where I died."

Watari looked confused. "Tsuzuki, that still doesn't explain how you know Relena Peacecraft."

"I'm getting to that, Watari. I just wanted the background out of the way first."

"Duo," Heero said softly. "You're stalling."

"I know I am, Hee-chan. Want me to add in about you?"

"Iie, I imagine by the time you're done they'll have a pretty good idea who I am. You always were the best at talking."

"And you always told me to shut up. Until you admitted that you liked my voice."

"It added to the silence."

Tatsumi cleared his throat softly and Tsuzuki turned back to the story. "Ahem. Yeah. I've known Ojousan for a while now… she used to stalk Heero here. Jeez, no matter how many times we switched location, and how many times he threatened to kill her, she would not give up!"

Heero grinned. "You should have let me shoot her when we met."

"I was too busy shooting you. I didn't expect to get and earful from her, then have her bandaging your damn wounds! And then you torpedoed my Aibou!"

"Mine too."

"Yeah, but you never loved Wing the way I did Deathscythe."

"You got me out of the hospital though, and pulled Wing up from the bottom."

"Then you stole my parts!"

"I thought you forgave me for that?"

"I forgave you for a lot of things when you had your tongue-"

"Duo! Audience!"

Duo blushed. "Oh yeah. Sorry."

"Uh, Tsuzuki-san?" Tatsumi questioned, politely as always. "I'm not quite sure I understand. You shot Yuy-san here?"

Heero rolled his eyes. Didn't these people know their history? "Yes, he did. Haven't you put it together yet?"

"Put what together?" the others chorused.

GuShoShin looked smug, but kept their beaks shut. Next to them, Hisoka was carefully keeping silent, a faint smile hovering around the corners of his mouth.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Duo Maxwell, I may run and I may hide but I never tell a lie. During the war I was known as 02, the Pilot of the Gundams Deathscythe and Deathscythe Hell. Oh, and Wing Zero for a short while, but we don't talk about that."

"Heero Yuy, Pilot 01. Wing, Epyon and Wing Zero. I've also piloted Heavyarms, but that didn't turn out so good."

"We don't really talk about that either."

"Hey, Fei was the only one who piloted his own Gundam the entire time."

"What about Altron?"

"That doesn't count, that was an upgrade."

Tatsumi turned to Watari with a dumbstruck look on his face. "Tsuzuki was a Gundam Pilot? A terrorist?"

"Freedom Fighter," GuShoShin corrected. "They were fighting for a cause and for a lot of innocent people who were suffering. They are classified in the records as Freedom Fighters."

"Ah, so da… Waitaminute! You _knew_!"

x

(1) That's a paper size for all you Americans. I can't find a ruler right now, but it's the size you can fit into a folder.

(2) That means that braided tightly it'll be around about his butt. Just short enough not to sit on when he sits down.

x

Ojousan - girl (respectful)

Arigato/domo arigato - thank you

Yare yare - good grief/oh my God

Konbanwa - good evening

Goku kantan desu ka - It's so very easy?

Hai, so da - yes, it is.

Chigau! - you're mistaken/wrong

Betsuni. Ore no baka desu. Gomen nasai, Tsuzuki-san - It's nothing. I'm an idiot. I'm very sorry, Mr. Tsuzuki.

Baka ja nai - you're not an idiot.


	13. Epilogue

And so we come to the end of an era… coughs yeah, right. Thanks to anyone who stuck this out the whole way through! If you didn't, I can't really be mad 'cause you won't be reading this anyway.

I pro'ly ain't disclaimed fer a while… I still don't own 'em.

Now I've said all the pretty stuff… what am I gonna write for an epilogue? stares at keyboard in confusion

…Here goes…

x

Duo laced his fingers together in a familiar pattern and bowed his head. "I call to you and beseech you, the twelve gods that protect me…"

He knew that Hisoka was backing him up, somewhere in the shadows with his gun. He knew that Heero was waiting back at the Ministery, probably worried sick because he hadn't told him that he had a mission, and tonight was there 'go out and eat and catch up' night. He knew that Tatsumi was after his blood for stealing and eating his pie at lunch.

But all he concentrated on was the comforting feeling of Suzaku racing forward to protect him.

ooooooooooooooo

Later, once the drama was over and they were back at 'base', he had to face an angry Heero Yuy.

"Where were you?" came the demand.

"There was a mission…?"

"And you couldn't have called?"

"Anou… I didn't think?"

"Damn right you didn't think! I've been worried sick about you! Maybe we need to get you a leash…"

"Ooh, kinky," commented a passing Watari.

Duo looked up shyly from under his bangs. "So, uh, did you eat yet?"

"No."

"Lets get some take-out and go back to mine, ok?"

"Hn."

Hisoka smiled slightly as he watched them go. Tsuzuki… Duo… was his partner still, true to his promise. But he and Heero were something more. The teenage Shinigami was content. After all, Heero was always there if they needed a third person, and he had his own partner. Tatsumi had been most pleased that he could continue field work since Watari decided that he wanted to spend all his waking hours in his lab.

And Heero could cook!

oooooooooooo

Duo looked shyly at Heero over the rim of his wineglass. The dark haired man was eating methodically and gracefully, wielding the chopsticks deftly with slender fingers. He had an inkstain on his hand, Duo noticed with a grin.

They had been having these 'dinners' for a while now, in an attempt – mostly initiated by Heero – to see if they were 'still compatible', as he put it.

Duo was pretty sure that they were. It surprised him. But he realized that Heero would never dare to make the first move, although he showed his emotions through his actions and those little glances he gave Duo when he thought the braided man wasn't looking.

Duo put down his chopsticks. It was time to take some action. And he had the perfect plan…

"I don't know why I decided to grow my hair so long, it's such a pain to take care of! And I want to wash it tonight, but it's just so awkward! Hey… say, Heero?"

"Hn?"

"Would you mind helping me with my hair tonight?"

Duo waited with baited breath as Heero's bright blue eyes snapped to his.

"Would you, Heero?"

His eyes never leaving Duo's face, Heero nodded slowly.

"Great!"

ooooooooooooooo

Heero had no idea what to expect. He had agreed to Duo's plea on the spur of the moment, and now that they were actually at Duo's apartment, he found that he had butterflies in his stomach. Pathetic. He really had gone downhill… Whatever happened to 'nerves of gundanium'?

To his… relief? Disappointment? Duo did not need him to get into the shower with him. Rather he tossed his shirt aside, and detached the shower head from the wall, setting it into the tub until the water warmed up. Then he pulled the tie from the end of his braid and began to swiftly unravel it with deft fingers.

Heero's breath caught in his throat. Duo's hair was amazing. A shimmering mass of brown, chestnut, auburn and gold that streamed down his back in soft waves. But… Duo was avoiding his eyes. Heero knew that taking his hair down was something that Duo rarely did in front of people. Hell, he hadn't even let him see it like this before; even when they had showered together, Duo had kept it braided.

Heero took a deep breath, then reached out at tilted Duo's face towards him with a gentle hand under his chin.

"Look at me," he whispered softly, barely audible over the roar of the water. "You are beautiful." Duo gave him a shy smile.

"Let's get this mess washed," he said cheerfully, his good humour not quite reaching his eyes.

Heero quickly found that he was needed to make sure that all of Duo's hair was wet, and that it was all lathered in shampoo. He shrugged his shirt too – it was only going to get wet if he continued to wear it. He also discovered that he liked rinsing the stuff out, making the brown locks silky smooth. The conditioner was harder – he found that working by feel worked better than by sight. Duo was making pleased sounds as Heero circled his fingers in the roots, making sure that everything was washed out.

"Mmmmm…… ok, now comes the hard bit: Drying this mess."

"Where are the towels?" Heero asked, finding himself strangely reluctant to free his hands from Duo's hair.

"Under the sink." Duo replied, squeezing his hair to get the water out.

Heero found the towels easily, and handed a large one to Duo, who wrapped his hair in it and began to dry it.

"Now comes the fun part: getting the tangles out."

"Doesn't conditioner make that easy?" Heero asked as he followed Duo into his bedroom.

"Not with hair as long as this it doesn't," Duo informed him as he handed Heero a hairbrush and sat on the bed.

It was… soothing, Heero decided. Taking care of Duo's hair, while making his wrist ache a little, was soothing. All he needed to concentrate on was the act of swiping the brush gently enough not to hurt but firm enough to actually be of some use against the tangles. Despite Duo's grumbling, the task wasn't that hard – although Heero suspected that if you had hurt an arm or a shoulder it would be damn near impossible.

"Do you want me to braid it?" Heero asked, setting the brush aside.

Duo turned to look at him and the waterfall of his hair shimmered as he twisted. "I think I might leave it loose to dry a little more," he said, smiling. Heero reached out and ran his fingers through the delicate hairs around Duo's ears.

"You're beautiful," he said, without really meaning too. All of a sudden he had an armful of Duo. The longhaired Shinigami trembled and hid his face in Heero's neck. Heero smoothed a hand down his back and kissed the top of his head. "Don't hide from me," he admonished softly. Slowly, hesitantly, Duo tipped his head up.

"Kiss me?" he asked softly.

Heero bent his head and complied, moaning at the contact. It had been so long… he slowly shifted back, letting Duo's weight bear him down onto the bed. He had normally been the one on top, but if Duo was bottom, his hair would get hopelessly tangled again… and Heero found that he liked Duo's weight pushing him to the mattress. The skin on skin contact was gloriously warm, and Duo's cool, damp hair spilled all over him. Reaching up, he buried his hands in it and gasped as Duo began to kiss and lick his way down his neck.

It was wonderful, euphoric, but… Duo was still shivering a little. Heero placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled into the violet eyes that peeked up. "You've made your point. Don't push yourself."

Duo's sigh of relief was almost tangible. He relaxed, placing more weight onto Heero, and laid his head on Heero's chest. "I was afraid…"

"I know. But it's a little too soon for you."

"And not for you?"

"I had a healthy life. You were… tortured by a twisted man. Then you spent more than half a centaury internalizing and not telling anyone that you needed help."

"Baka desu… baka desu, zutto."

"Baka ja nai. Duo desu. Shinigami desu. Boku no koibito desu."

xxxxxx

Baka desu… baka desu, zutto – I'm not totally sure; I made it up, but the gist is 'once a fool, a fool forever'

Baka ja nai – you're not a fool.

Boku no koibito desu – you are my lover. (I figure you can get the other two on your own)

xxxxxx

For all those wanting a Hisoka/Tsuzuki, sorry! I just can't have Heero and Duo in a fic and not want them together! (unless I'm reading a 2x3 or 2x5… never been a fan of 2x4, except for 'coming of age'. Great fic, that.) Please bear in mind that these guys are gonna be around for a while. 'Soka has plenty of time, if Heero and Duo change their minds. Also… Hisoka is a lot younger that Tsuzuki. We're talking about around 82 years here. It would make sense to wait until our little empath is more experienced, ne?

The epilogue was going to be longer, but it was such a gorgeous place to stop that I couldn't resist.


End file.
